tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23027620577724150452024-03-12T18:04:08.405-07:00Living the Northeastern MBAFor all those wondering what really goes on in the day of a Northeastern MBA studentKatrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.comBlogger86125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2302762057772415045.post-78370639322232429842012-08-12T16:53:00.000-07:002012-08-12T16:53:00.768-07:00The Last Post<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b>The Last Day of My MBA Program</b><br />
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<i>(June 25, 2012)</i></div>
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This week is not like all the rest; not like the 94 previous
weeks my posts on <i>Living the Northeastern MBA</i> have outlined. No, this week is the last of my Northeastern MBA.<br />
<br />
I start my day at the Ocean Spray offices like I have been for the
past two months. I work on my projects, grab lunch in the cafeteria and send off
a flurry of e-mails. But work is not what I’m going to focus on in this post because something much more epic is happening. Today, at 7:30 pm, I will enter
Dodge Hall as a student for the last time, sit in a classroom for the last
time and present to my fellow MBAs for the last
time. </div>
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But, for all the hype surrounding this last day and all the wishing I have done for the
past several months for the program to hurry up and end because I was just so darn exhausted, I now want to savor
every moment.<br />
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While my Marketing in the Service Sector class tonight has a final presentation, it is no Interdisciplinary Project from Spring Semester 2011; no Living Document; no
Accounting Annual Report Project. It is simple, quick and over rather uneventfully.<br />
<br />
Furthermore, my
class is composed of only a scant few of the classmates I started orientation
with 21 months 2 weeks and 5 days ago. Most of the members of Section 24 and 34 are off at their jobs, in their
concentration-specific courses or on their extended corporate residencies.<br />
<br />
My graduation ceremony already
occurred. There is no great fanfare for the end.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> At this realization </span>I start to tear up in the middle of class (don’t laugh). I don’t know if it
is with joy, sadness, nostalgia, anxiety or just plain exhaustion but my
emotions are getting to me. My graduate school experience was many years in the making. For
any of you who have completed an MBA, are in the middle of one or are just starting
to consider it, you know the journey is far more than two years long. Far more than
all those applications, a co-op, a cohort or a degree. For me, it was nearly
six years ago that I started to consider an MBA. Six years from when I first got that inkling during my junior year of
college that, yeah, maybe this was for me. </div>
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My journey not only took me across the country to what would
become my new, permanent home,
but across the globe to India for my International Field Study and through a universe of jobs
(aviation to cranberries is no small trip). But the journey also transformed me from a
recent University of Washington graduate struggling in the economy of 2008 to landing my dream job, in my
dream city and with the perfect MBA behind me. </div>
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So, faithful readers, 86 posts later this trip comes to
an end. And just when I thought it would close in an uncharacteristic whimper,
I step outside of Dodge Hall at 9:30 pm to the most extreme thunderstorm I have ever seen. Taking shelter under my tiny umbrella, I speed through the torrential downpour to my apartment. I rush
through roads that have become rivers, my shoes and clothes drenched all the
way through and I think, this is how it should end; this amazing journey; this
transformative experience; just like this: in a glorious flash of lightning and
a crash of thunder.</div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">*The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Northeastern University, Ocean Spray Cranberries, either entity's staff, employees or affiliates. </span></div>
</div>Katrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2302762057772415045.post-62650019015559327302012-07-30T19:45:00.000-07:002012-07-30T19:45:27.343-07:00A Weekend Soujourn to New Hampshire<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vjylqqIbT2A/UBc7w62UYOI/AAAAAAAAAjY/mESQZK3qKJQ/s1600/lake+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vjylqqIbT2A/UBc7w62UYOI/AAAAAAAAAjY/mESQZK3qKJQ/s320/lake+3.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Henniker, NH</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b>Seventh Week of Summer Semester </b><br />
<i>(June 18 - 24)</i><br />
<br />
Today marks the start of the second-to-last week of my MBA program. I honestly wish I could spend more time reminscing on it but I'm just too darn busy, so let's get started!<br />
<br />
On Monday I start my morning with my very first Monthly Consumption meeting. I was told by my boss last week that this month I would be pulling together the Foods SNAPshot. A SNAPshot is essentially a picture of our business' health. I attend the hour-long meeting and, I'm not going to lie, I'm a little intimidated by all the charts and graphs that I now have to make sense of by Thursday.<br />
<br />
However, I don't have long to let my nerves get to me because I have a super fun class to attend: Sensory Training! I spend the next hour learning all about how the senses impact Ocean Spray product development, followed by tons of taste and smell testing. I love my job!<br />
<br />
I have the rest of my afternoon reserved for beginning my SNAPshot (trust me, I'm going to need all that time!).<br />
<br />
That night, in my Marketing in the Service Sector class, I have a case study due on Menton Bank and the company's transition to a new store model. However, most of my classmates are more concerned with our impending final project which is due in just one week. You might remember that my team and I are looking into the websites of eight different service companies and analyzing their effectiveness. We have our paper and presentation due next Monday, but in the interest of pro-activity, my team and I all decided to submit our paper and draft slides to each other by today.<br />
<br />
Tuesday morning at work starts out well with a 2.5-hour new hire meeting. The session is really valuable as I learn all about my benefits, the way employee performance is measured, the history of the cooperative and more. Plus, I get to meet a bunch of other newbies and get some face time in with the CEO! Not a bad start to a Tuesday, if I do say so.<br />
<br />
I follow the new hire meeting up with my buddy lunch before I have to get back to real work in the afternoon.<br />
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I spend the rest of the day in meetings for a Craisins<sup>®</sup> package redesign and new merchandising vehicles before buckling down for a few hours of SNAPshot work.<br />
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Tonight marks our second-to-last Consumer Behavior class and the beginning of our final presentations! Yikes! Fortunately for my team, we won't be in front of the class until Thursday, but we still had to submit our final paper and the presentation to the professor today (in the interest of fairness to all the groups).<br />
<br />
Before we get to the first two groups, our professor leads us in a discussion of an article on MTV's expansion around the world as well as our final book chapter discussion. We then move on to the first two groups. Fortunately, after watching these teams present I get less nervous about our presentation because they both seemed to cover the same topics as our team did (looks like we are on track for later this week!).<br />
<br />
On Wednesday I start my day with coffee with the VP of Human Resources at Ocean Spray. She has kindly set up a session with a few new hires to see how our first few months at the company have been.<br />
<br />
After my fill of caffeine, I head back to my cube for some more SNAPshot work. Fortunately, I have something fun planned as a break from all that Nielsen analysis: a store visit to Walmart and Stop & Shop to check out Craisins<sup>®</sup> pricing. <br />
<br />
After my store visits, I spend the rest of my day working with an Associate Trade Marketing Manager to get a UPC request set up for a new cranberry sauce configuration, followed by a great working session with my boss to perfect my SNAPshot.<br />
<br />
Tonight in my Marketing in the Service sector class we discuss the last case of the my MBA career! Fortunately, it's a pretty fun one that spurs some lively debate around what level of responsibility FedEx has when it can't meet its promise to 'deliver next day'.<br />
<br />
After class lets out a bit early, my group meets one last time before our presentation on Monday to review our slides, make some final edits and get a bit of practice in.<br />
<br />
Thursday morning is spent attending to a plethora of work requests and mentally preparing for the presentation of my SNAPshot during our consumption working session later in that morning.<br />
<br />
Alas, I'm up first for SNAPshot presentations and I don't think it goes that well. I'm pretty frustrated with myself for not presenting all the information I had as clearly, or as confidently, as I would have liked. All I can do is take constructive notes from my team and hope that next month I use these learnings to improve - a lot.<br />
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On the bright side, I don't have much time to reflect on my embarrassing presentation because I have a ton of work I postponed earlier this week in favor of working on my consumption report. <br />
<br />
First up, I attend a meeting for two new Craisins<sup>®</sup> packaging initiatives and then spend some time making updates to my consumption report before sending the final out to my team. That afternoon, I also get a lesson from my boss on another monthly report I will now be in charge of updating: the Sales and Operating Plan (S&OP). This report looks at the estimated volumes of each product and readjusts our forecast as we get actuals for each month in.<br />
<br />
Tonight marks my final class of Consumer Behavior and my second-to-last presentation of my MBA program (are you getting annoyed with my countdowns yet? Too bad!).<br />
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My group is up last tonight and, despite our fears that we would run over on our strict time limit for our project on 'Health Conscious America' we ended up finishing early (I'm pretty sure we all rushed throught it). Fortunately, besides the rushed pace, my group feels pretty confident in our presentation.<br />
<br />
And with that, I have just one class left next week.<br />
<br />
My half-day Friday is super busy as I play catch-up from all my intern/new hire meetings from this week and the time I invested in learning how to pull my SNAPshots and S&OP report together. In fact, I only stop for a brief moment for my Meet and Greet with the VP of Global Marketing and Sales. Fortunately, it was a great 1:1 and I truly appreciated the opportunity to have a real conversation with a very busy exec. Lovely!<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eeVtvhAaROM/UBc8NeSXnmI/AAAAAAAAAjg/X2_7-sk4BN4/s1600/lake.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eeVtvhAaROM/UBc8NeSXnmI/AAAAAAAAAjg/X2_7-sk4BN4/s320/lake.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lake Massasecum, NH</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
After the 1:1, I get super focused on finished the rest of my work so that I can leave by 2:00 pm today. Why 2:00 pm, you ask? Well, I have some super fun plans for this afternoon and weekend! You might recall that last semester, as part of my Brand and Advertising Management class, my team did a consulting project for <a href="http://hennikerbrewing.com/">Henniker Brewing Company</a>. Now, the owner of the company has invited the entire team up to Henniker, New Hampshire for a trip to his lake house, an afternoon on his boat and tons of barbeque! Yes!<br />
<br />
To make things even better, Nick is meeting me in New Hampshire later that night and we are staying in a quaint hotel for the evening because, why not?<br />
<br />
I somehow manage to get back into the city in time to meet two of my former group mates at 3:00 pm and we make the drive up to Henniker, NH. As soon as we arrive (at about 5:30 pm) we jump onto the boat of our former 'client' and tour Lake Massasecum. It's simply gorgeous and being outdoors does wonders for my frazzled brain.<br />
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After a couple of hours of swimming and boat riding it's time for massive amounts of hamburgers, hot dogs and, of course, craft beer.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lLtXJeaZq1I/UBc8f271FCI/AAAAAAAAAjo/NQUhGYrCrHc/s1600/lake+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lLtXJeaZq1I/UBc8f271FCI/AAAAAAAAAjo/NQUhGYrCrHc/s320/lake+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Colby Hill Inn, NH</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Nick joins us around 8:30 pm. After some leisurely chatting with everyone on the screened-in porch (love!), he and I make our way to our cozy hotel for the night: the historic <a href="http://www.colbyhillinn.com/">Colby Hill Inn</a>. It is painfully quaint and cute.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IEMjGL2hago/UBc8ysmCikI/AAAAAAAAAjw/UmIoXb4wZx4/s1600/breakfast.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IEMjGL2hago/UBc8ysmCikI/AAAAAAAAAjw/UmIoXb4wZx4/s320/breakfast.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Amazing apple pancakes at Colby Hill Inn</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Nick and I wake up on Saturday morning for a delicious breakfast at the hotel. I order their apple pancakes and some cranberry juice - of course!<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ibv25rhe1eA/UBc9IALH2SI/AAAAAAAAAj4/LhzPvLaeCws/s1600/bridges.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ibv25rhe1eA/UBc9IALH2SI/AAAAAAAAAj4/LhzPvLaeCws/s320/bridges.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of Henniker's historic bridges</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
We then spend the morning exploring Henniker's picturesque bridges and old town area before heading back to the lake for another round of boating - this time on a speed boat with my group mate and her family. I am super impressed with my friend and her brother as they perform daredevil wake boarding stunts, leaping across wakes like it's no big deal. When she asks if I would like to try, I attempt not to laugh. Yeah, I have a hard time keeping my balance standing on solid ground so any sort of extreme sport is not in the cards for me.<br />
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After an afternoon on the water, we all indulge in some home-cooked mexican lasagna before Nick and I bid my teammate's family adieu to head back to the city.<br />
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By the time Nick and I get back to Boston we are super hungry and decide that a steak is the only thing that will do. We venture down to the theater district for a meal at <a href="http://www.flemingssteakhouse.com/">Fleming's</a> where the amount of food we order is nothing short of embarrassing. Wedge salads, oysters, Filet Mignon, cheddar jalapeno mac n' cheese, scalloped potatoes and a fennel shortbread topped with bourbon berries are just some of the items we devour. Delicious! <br />
<br />
On Sunday, Nick and I grab some breakfast at <a href="http://www.pavementcoffeehouse.com/">Pavement Coffeehouse</a>. I order my favorite breakfast bagel: the Tequila Sunrise with jalapeno cream cheese! Yum! After our coffee fill, we then head to the Fenway movie theater for an afternoon showing of Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. Laugh all you want, but it was actually a pretty fun movie.<br />
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After a couple of hours of historically accurate vampire killing, Nick and I meet up with one of my classmates at <a href="http://www.dillonsboston.com/">Dillon's</a> for apps and adult beverages.<br />
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Alas, after a weekend of fun, I have to spend the rest of my Sunday preparing for my very last class/presentation/assignment of my MBA! Eeek!<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">*The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Northeastern University, Ocean Spray Cranberries, either entity's staff or affiliates.</span><br />
<br /></div>Katrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2302762057772415045.post-61242317375241291202012-07-15T11:48:00.000-07:002012-07-15T11:48:27.051-07:00My First Presentation to the Decision Management Team<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b>Sixth Week of Summer Semester</b><br />
<i>(June 11 - 17)</i><br />
<br />
Well folks, the clock is winding down on my time as a blogger for the Northeastern MBA program! I have just over two weeks left as a graduate student. Can you believe it?<br />
<br />
That being said, Monday begins with my normal early start, followed by a day punctuated with meetings. My first meeting is of particular interest to me as it pertains to the pricing strategy of two new Craisins<sup>®</sup> packaging innovations. I relish the opportunity to closely look at our P&L statements (Profit and Loss). This really helps me understand all the elements that go into pricing our products. What is especially fascinating are line items such as cost of fruit and return per barrel as we are, after all, an agricultural cooperative.<br />
<br />
Immediately after that session I venture into uncharted territory (the R&D department) for a meeting to discuss the status of several innovation projects (most of which pertain to Craisins<sup>®</sup>!). It was really neat to sit around a table with employees from quality control, packaging and more. I always like meeting new people and this meeting, more than anything, helped me put names to a faces.<br />
<br />
After this session, my boss and I rush upstairs for a quickie meeting with the VP of Sales and Marketing. We need his weigh-in on several potential film options for a new Craisins<sup>®</sup> product. Each one boasts slight differences but much larger implications for consumer preference. <br />
<br />
After that meeting, I sneak away to the atrium to take in the Asian Expo. It has absolutely everything I love in one location: essentially a huge exhibit of all the ways other countries in Asia use our Ocean Spray products (complete with samples - win!). I try fun cranberry-flavored sodas, cranberry chutney from India and a slew of cranberry cakes and dried nut combinations. I am in heaven and have to control myself from asking for samples of all the products.<br />
<br />
The rest of my afternoon is spent meeting the Packaging Design and Graphics Manager to review a few things and partaking in an emergency meeting for two Craisins<sup>®</sup>packaging initiatives in light of a timeline that has been pushed forward dramatically. <br />
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In class tonight we discuss innovation at Progressive Insurance, most notably the precursor to the 'snapshot' device we see on television commercials today. I also meet with my group after class to discuss the status of our final project (due in just two weeks!).<br />
<br />
Tuesday I have all glorious morning to catch up on work before my wall of meetings hits. Fortunately, before I face that wall I get the chance fuel up on the ever-so-addictive Cranberry Cafe salad bar during lunch with my Ocean Spray buddy. Per usual, we spend the time catching up and enjoying the outdoor patio.<br />
<br />
Most of the rest of my afternoon is spent in meetings, starting with one to discuss the two Craisins<sup>®</sup> packaging initiatives which have just been moved up several months. We all pay particular attention to deliverables and drop-dead times and then scatter to try and get it all done. <br />
<br />
Next, I get the pleasure of attending another intern training session; this one on Finance. It is particularly helpful to hear from the Corporate Controller himself as he explains Ocean Spray's sometimes confusing pool year accounting system. Loved it!<br />
<br />
My day wraps up with a meeting on our "Make the Swap" Craisins<sup>®</sup> campaign. We discuss all sorts of cool, innovative programs we are implementing including large-scale sampling efforts, social media campaigns and more.<br />
<br />
In my Consumer Behavior class tonight I was finally forced to turn in my Consumer Brand Audit where I was asked to focus on one role I 'play' in my daily life and the necessary tools of that role. I ended up choosing my 'traveler' self and focused on the REI backpack I use for my globe-trotting adventures. The project ended up being quite fun to complete but at this point in my MBA (with less than two weeks of class left) I have very little motivation to do anything at all.<br />
<br />
Wednesday is a rare occurrence of a day where I don't have a single meeting on my schedule. With so much time there is no way I could be anything but productive as a get through assignment after assignment including helping to design a new universal header card for our Craisins<sup>®</sup> shippers, doing some deep-dive Nielsen data pulls and more. <br />
<br />
I only break for lunch with a fellow Northeastern MBA blogger, a first year who is completing her corporate residency in the Finance department at Ocean Spray! NEU bloggers unite!<br />
<br />
In my Marketing in the Service Sector class tonight we discuss the case of TL Contact - essentially a company that offers personalized web pages to hospital patients so that their friends/families can keep everyone posted on the health and progress of the patient.<br />
<br />
Thursday is a big day, mainly because I have to present during my very first DMT (Decision Management Team) meeting. The DMT is a group of nearly all the senior leadership members at Ocean Spray that meets once a month to approve or deny continued work on new projects. Eeek!<br />
<br />
However, before I can get to that, I have a busy morning that includes our weekly Marketing team huddle in the common area, my 1:1 with my boss (where I, of course, review my DMT deck with her one last time) and other such tasks.<br />
<br />
But come 11:00 am I am already waiting outside the doors of the DMT conference room, trying to calm my nerves and practice my key points over and over in my head. Fortunately, the project that I was presenting a status update on was quickly approved and I didn't have to stand under fire for very long. I even got a nice compliment on my presentation from the Director of New Business Development. Phew!<br />
<br />
After lunch I head over to the Ag building, a separate building on the Ocean Spray campus that was formerly used, as I understand it, for product testing. I have never been over there so I'm super excited. Plus, the meeting is to discuss the results of some amazing consumer research we had just completed, including ethnographies and video interviews with our 'heavy users'. <br />
<br />
Once that two-hour presentation ends, I head back to the main building for another meeting on a new Craisins<sup>®</sup> product. Unfortunately, the meeting ends up being cancelled since the previous session ran a bit long. But not to worry, I have plenty of work to keep me busy before my next meeting to discuss some graphics changes to our Craisins<sup>®</sup> packaging.<br />
<br />
That night in my Consumer Behavior class we discuss the controversy over a South African rugby team playing a song called <i>De La Rey</i> during a game. Apparently it is a song the promotes General de la Rey's battles, much to the contention of some ethnic groups in the country. The class discussion was particularly impactful because our professor lived in South Africa as a boy and one of my classmates is from the very area they were discussing in the case. How cool! <br />
<br />
After this hectic week I am very grateful for my half day Fridays. Still, I'm in the office early to work on my mounting projects.<br />
<br />
Also on Friday, I have called together my very first meeting for a project that I will lead! I have been put in charge of a seasonal foods item and have called together anyone I could think of who might be of assistance. I'm a bit nervous because, honestly, I am sure there are so many elements of bringing a product to market that I don't even know about (even one that has run in previous years). I just hope I don't mess anything up!<br />
<br />
After I leave work that afternoon, I spent the rest of the day running errands and relaxing a bit before a weekend of library time.<br />
<br />
Saturday morning I'm up early to run some errands before I eventually drag myself to Snell Library around noon. I have come under a serious case of senioritis but I have to keep my focus because my final presentation for Consumer Behavior is due next week. I spend the majority of the day doing my readings for the week and finalizing the paper and presentation for my Consumer Behavior final project on 'Health Conscious America'.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-aJwdKmImcMo/UAMJbPOEyFI/AAAAAAAAAjI/bGEQWPj9oBU/s1600/Thorntons.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-aJwdKmImcMo/UAMJbPOEyFI/AAAAAAAAAjI/bGEQWPj9oBU/s320/Thorntons.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Still missing my huevos rancheros at The Other Side Cafe; this version by Thornton's will have to do</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Sunday is slightly better because I start out my day with brunch at <a href="http://www.thorntonsboston.com/">Thornton's</a> with the library buddy and classmate. I load up on huevos rancheros for what will be another full day of final project work.<br />
<br />
After a grueling 7 hours in the library my friend and I decide that, to keep our sanity, a reward of take out is necessary. I spend the rest of my Sunday evening indulging in <a href="http://www.blackjackpasta.com/">Black Jack Pasta</a>.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">*The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Northeastern University, Ocean Spray Cranberries, either entity's staff or affiliates.</span></div>Katrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2302762057772415045.post-21531987969199559332012-07-10T18:37:00.002-07:002012-07-10T18:37:55.480-07:00Mounting Responsibilities<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_cj9d7c9Gt8/T_zRX9cXQSI/AAAAAAAAAi8/FTdKnnExDkI/s1600/Photo+shoot+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_cj9d7c9Gt8/T_zRX9cXQSI/AAAAAAAAAi8/FTdKnnExDkI/s320/Photo+shoot+2.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Photo Shoot for the new Northeastern MBA brochure</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b>Fifth Week of Summer Semester</b><br />
<i>(June 4 -10)</i><br />
<br />
This week proves to be one of mounting work responsibilities.<br />
<br />
On Monday, I get into the office early and manage a couple of hours of meeting-free time to get some work done. Then, from 11:00-12:30 pm I have a monthly Brand Marketing Meeting where the Brand Team shares the status of projects they are working on and other interesting work-related anecdotes.<br />
<br />
After lunch that afternoon, I have a meeting with the Marketing Manager in charge of a new Craisins<sup>®</sup> packaging initiative. The meeting is to discuss special requests made by individual retailer accounts and how Marketing and Sales handle those requests. <br />
<br />
Once that meeting is completed, I rush over to Human Resources to continue my discussion from last week regarding how to get the new hires onto the intern training program. The HR Manager and I manage to get the training list and dates and I promise to set up appointment alerts for all the new hires so that they can attend. We also discuss professional development books and the potential for a company-wide book club to read and discuss said books.<br />
<br />
When that meeting wraps up I head straight to a workmate's cube to learn how to move plugs in SAP (one of our Financial planning software programs). You see, when invoices are coded incorrectly, they go into a 'plug' in SAP. When that happens, Marketing, as managers of our budgets, has to go in and move the 'plugs' into the appropriate account. Since I had never done this before, it was quite confusing and I definitely needed my fellow Assistant Marketing Manager's help.<br />
<br />
That night in my Marketing in the Service Sector class I have to submit my Flying J case write-up. Flying J is a chain of low-price gas stations facing the critical decision of whether to raise prices or not. I'm a bit nervous as I hand it in because it's worth 1/3 of our grade and is our first 'official' submitted assignment. Yikes!<br />
<br />
Tuesday is a day of catching up on work. I arrive early to get some productive hours in before our 10:00 am meeting on employee engagement. The employee engagement meeting is great and the entire marketing team spends the next hour and a half having some amazing discussions about ways to improve employee engagement, training and communication. People provide some great suggestions on ways to improve some of our company offerings and initiatives such as more inclusive team meetings, opening training opportunities to all staff members and more.<br />
<br />
When noon rolls around it's time for my weekly Ocean Spray buddy lunch. My buddy and I enjoy Cranberry Cafe salads and catch up our respective weekends.<br />
<br />
The rest of my afternoon is spent working on my numerous assignments, punctuated only by a 2:00 pm conference call with an outside account manager who has been able to secure a free promotion for our Ocean Spray Cranberry sauce this fall. Yes! <br />
<br />
In my Consumer Behavior class that night we enjoy a presentation on "How the Brain Buys" which includes a great grocery shopping re-enactment and some Ocean Spray shout-outs. Woot! We also get to work in groups on creating a new advertising campaign for an existing brand. Not surprisingly, considering my slight addiction to the brand, my group selects Dunkin' Donuts for our exercise. We wrap up the class session with a final group exercise on a vignette from our book about a young man who spends more than he would like when purchasing a used car and how consumer behavior drove that purchase decision.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DPdl9rMq6FM/T_h5OiOoblI/AAAAAAAAAiw/DwPTCwUMTvk/s1600/Rain.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DPdl9rMq6FM/T_h5OiOoblI/AAAAAAAAAiw/DwPTCwUMTvk/s320/Rain.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Monsoon-like rain: Just part of living on the East Coast</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Wednesday is a loooong day. I'm up at 5:30 am in order to get to work by 7:00 am. I have so much to do today and, of course, my calendar is riddled with meetings from 9:00 am - 5:00 pm.<br />
<br />
One of the good things about getting into the office so early is that I get a solid amount of time to focus, un-distracted. I'm also able to respond to a data request from our Director that require a quick turnaround. That morning I also get some good news in the form of approval for all of the new hires to attend the intern training sessions that run all summer. I am particularly interested in the Finance 101 session, Contracts Management class, the discussion on a case study on international expansion at Ocean Spray and a visit to Arnold Communications! <br />
<br />
My first meeting of the day gives me the opportunity to learn, first-hand, how to enter a new product/package idea into our stage-gate type process. I'm helping out another Ocean Spray employee who doesn't have access to the system. Fortunately, with the gracious help of an Ocean Spray Commercialization Manager I am able to successfully enter the new request into the system.<br />
<br />
I spend the next several hours working on a deck for some new Craisins<sup>®</sup> package options, reviewing graphics for these packages as well as responding to what feels like a million other one-off tasks.<br />
<br />
At noon I break for lunch with our new intern, an MBA student from Boston College. I'm super excited to have her here for the summer and working on the foods team!<br />
<br />
After lunch I rush off to my weekly meeting to discuss the new Craisins<sup>®</sup> packaging I was talking about earlier. The team is trying to ensure we have all the information we can to prepare a sell deck for a customer meeting next week.<br />
<br />
After that meeting I have a couple of precious hours to get some more work done before a graphics review meeting, which I'm super excited about! It's my first official graphics review meeting and I totally love getting to pass on some design inputs (it harks back to my days as a newspaper page designer).<br />
<br />
I round out my day with a meeting regarding a special customer request for new Craisins<sup>®</sup> merchandising vehicles and cramming as much work as possible before I have to leave at 6:00 pm to get to class on time.<br />
<br />
In my Marketing in the Service Sector class we discuss a case on BT, a British telephone company struggling through a move from a government-owned monopoly over their industry, to a public market.<br />
<br />
Thursday morning I get in to the office early again to try and get some work done before a weekly Marketing huddle at 9:00 am. I have plenty to work on including managing the budget, gathering the legal approvals I need for the free Cranberry Sauce promotion, preparing my deck for the DMT (Decision Management Team) presentation I will give next week and more!<br />
<br />
In fact, I have so many projects in the air right now that after the huddle meeting, my boss and regroup to discuss my projects statuses, even though my weekly 1:1 with her is tomorrow.<br />
<br />
Lunch today is with my boss and the Director of Cooperative Communications. As part of my personal development plan, I am trying to find ways to leverage my past experience and skills to help the cooperative. One idea that came up was for me to look into an Ocean Spray blog (either external or internal). I was, of course, super excited about this idea and enjoyed the working lunch to discuss the potential of such a blog.<br />
<br />
Right after lunch I rush upstairs for another meeting with HR to further discuss the viability of an employee book club, training initiatives and more.<br />
<br />
After that meeting I have just a few minutes before I join a meeting that pertains to cranberry sauce. One of the Marketing Managers in Special Markets is exploring options for cranberry sauce, foods, etc. in numerous different capacities and I asked if I could hop on the meeting. It was super informative and enlightening to see marketing from the different perspective of sales and special markets, rather than marketing directly to consumers.<br />
<br />
My busy day wraps up with a conference call with another CPG company who wants to partner with Craisins<sup>®</sup> for a promotion. The proposition sounds great and is one that would fit in nicely with our brand strategy and messaging but some of the logistics will have to be ironed out.<br />
<br />
In Consumer Behavior that night the class was tasked with bringing in photos of how Nestle Crunch bars make us feel. It was highly entertaining to see how varied the photos were and what emotions people associated with them. I was just happy that I had an excuse to eat chocolate! <br />
<br />
Friday's are always hectic days, now that work lets out at 12:30 pm. When I get into my cube I immediately set about preparing for my 1:1 with my boss. I update my project status list and gather all the documents I need for her to review.<br />
<br />
When that meeting ends I have just a little bit of time to work on other projects before a review meeting for my DMT deck with the Commercialization Manager for the project. I want to make sure the deck is perfect, as I'll be presenting to senior level management for the first time. I gladly take notes on the suggestions and comments I receive and set about making the improvements.<br />
<br />
Alas, today I don't have the luxury of staying too late as I have to book it back to Boston for a photo shoot for the new Northeastern MBA brochure. I can't help but laugh a bit to myself that this will be the third professional photo shoot that I've done during my two years at Northeastern. Fortunately, the photographer is one I worked with previously so the session is fast and wraps up just as the skies open and it starts to rain.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8VHWmFs1gu0/T_h4yZrI8_I/AAAAAAAAAig/ZFg_B32xusc/s1600/ring.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8VHWmFs1gu0/T_h4yZrI8_I/AAAAAAAAAig/ZFg_B32xusc/s320/ring.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A little graduation bling, courtesy of David Yurman</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
After the photo shoot I head over to Copley to pick up a belated graduation gift from my Mother: a ring from David Yurman. I then try and dodge torrential, monsoon-like rains to go get a mani/pedi (now that's dedication) which is followed by dinner with a classmate at <a href="http://happysbarandkitchen.com/">Happy's Bar + Kitchen</a>, a new restaurant in Fenway.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yrQm6-ywfhM/T_h4-S_9qsI/AAAAAAAAAio/hGyKluD4UwU/s1600/Happys.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yrQm6-ywfhM/T_h4-S_9qsI/AAAAAAAAAio/hGyKluD4UwU/s320/Happys.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Glad to know Happy's Bar + Kitchen opened up right by my future apartment!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
We enjoy delicious adult beverages, a make-your-own nacho platter, duck tacos and crispy meatballs.Yum!<br />
<br />
It's a good thing I had a nice Friday because the rest of my weekend is spent in Snell Library. Ugh. I finally face my Consumer and Brand Audit assignment that was pushed back two weeks, complete my consumer interview for my Consumer Behavior project, write my portion of my Service Sector final paper/project and more. The only thing that keeps me going is knowing that I have less than three weeks left of my MBA! <br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">*The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Northeastern University, Ocean Spray Cranberries, either entity's staff or affiliates. </span><br />
<br />
<br /></div>Katrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2302762057772415045.post-70108973475781607862012-07-01T07:36:00.000-07:002012-07-01T07:36:39.291-07:00Where Foodie Dreams Come True<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b>Fourth Week of the Semester</b><br />
<i>(May 29 - June 3)</i><br />
<br />
My fourth week of the summer semester starts on Tuesday after the long holiday weekend...and what a day it is! I have back-to-back-to-back meetings from 8:30 am-4:00 pm! Phew!<br />
<br />
I get into work at 7:45 am that morning to get my bearings for my busy day. At 8:30 I meet with another Assistant Marketing Manager to review some budgeting information in preparation for several BMS system moves and accruals that will be put into effect later this week and next. Since I'm still learning the ropes, I'm a bit slower than others and need all the extra help I can get.<br />
<br />
Then it's off to crash my boss' 1:1 wither her boss to get our MBOs (Managing by Objective) confirmed before loading them into our company system. These MBOs are critical because they act a blueprint for what each employee wishes to accomplish during the year. Come review time, this is what we will be evaluated against.<br />
<br />
Just after that I transition into my 1:1 with my boss where we discuss all of my completed and in-progress projects.<br />
<br />
Right before lunch there is the quarterly President's award which recognizes individuals with substantial achievement in the company. Two employees recieved awards this quarter. Having this event right on the tail of our Marketing off-site where even more awards were handed out makes me feel really good about the opportunity to get recognized for hard work here at Ocean Spray.<br />
<br />
Lunch today is had over budget accruals. I frantically try to keep pace as the people in the room talk about accruing for invoices, moving funds from one place to another and allocating programs across profit centers. Phew!<br />
<br />
As soon as that wraps it's on to a meeting on a new Craisins<sup>®</sup> packaging initiative which is followed by a follow-up meeting to look at some of Craisins<sup>®</sup> key retail accounts.<br />
<br />
At 3:30 pm I get to attend my first ever DMT meeting (Decision Management Team). I love sitting in on this monthly session because it involves a ton of employees presenting their new ideas/innovations to the Directors, Vice Presidents and C-Suite to get approval to move through the stage-gate process. So cool!<br />
<br />
In class that night we get to present our progress report to our Consumer Behavior class. My team is focusing on health conscious America and how they view organic and all natural foods in the marketplace, particularly focusing on LOHAS consumers (Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability). It's also fun to see what the other groups are presenting on. Their topics range from "Sex Sells" to "Online Dating". I also get some amazing news in the form of a deliverable extension of two weeks! Hallelujah! This makes my week and means that when I get home that night I can actually work on this blog and get to bed before midnight! Woot!<br />
<br />
On Wednesday I get into the office around 8:30 am after hitting mystery traffic on the way in that could not be attributed to anything...hmmm.<br />
<br />
Fortunately, my day is much less meeting heavy and I have substantially more time to get work done. I plug away at budget planning, Nielsen data pulls and more until my lunch date with my Ocean Spray buddy. I discuss my experience at the DMT with her, along with the somewhat overwhelming task of managing the Foods budget.<br />
<br />
After lunch I have a quick phone call with a potential promotion partner for sauce before heading to a weekly Calibration session put on by the Consumer Affairs department. Each week Consumer Affairs listens in on customer calls to ensure that our staff are addressing the needs of the consumer appropriately and professionally. It was really nice to the see how much time and energy is placed, each week, into ensuring the quality of brand and the satisfaction of our customers.<br />
<br />
In my Service Sector class tonight we discuss a case on Steamboat Ski, a ski resort company dealing with declining ski package purchases in the face of less expensive of more prestigious competitors. <br />
<br />
Thursday my day is nicely broken up with meetings that occur every couple of hours. To me, this is the perfect ratio because I still get meetings in but I also get enough time between them to dig into work. On the agenda for the day: our weekly marketing huddle to kick off the morning, some work, a meeting to discuss a new Craisins<sup>®</sup> product, some work, lunch, a meeting to review a new product's UPC request process, some work and then a budget review to wrap up my day. Tres productive!<br />
<br />
In class that night we discuss an article called "The Coolhunt" which chronicles two womens' roles as 'Coolhunters'. Essentially, these 30+ year-old women hang out with hipster kids and try to catch on to the next big thing. It all sounds bit fluffy to me and, to be quite honest, these women sounds a bit annoying and full of themselves. Still, it was interesting to hear about how much value companies put into their services (or similar ones) and the money they will pay for it.<br />
<br />
Yay for half-day Fridays! But, with half the time to do the same amount of work Fridays are also quite hectic. I cram in a ton of work today, breaking only for a meeting with the Marketing HR rep and a phone call to my boss to give her a status update.<br />
<br />
My meeting with HR goes very well and I'm able to discuss ways to work towards my personal/professional development goals as well as get all the new hires onto the intern training programs. These training programs will be perfect for all us new hires because they involve more than a dozen sessions on topics as diverse as finance, contracts, package design and consumer affairs. They even get a trip to Arnold Communications!<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PgtBh7K8Qro/T_BcuAS9FuI/AAAAAAAAAiA/v4ZA65UQ9Gc/s1600/Parish.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-PgtBh7K8Qro/T_BcuAS9FuI/AAAAAAAAAiA/v4ZA65UQ9Gc/s320/Parish.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tuna burger and vino at Parish Cafe</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
After work I meet a classmate for a fun afternoon of mani/pedis and shopping topped off with dinner and drinks at Parish Cafe. Lovely.<br />
<br />
Saturday I'm up early for my requisite library session. Ugh. I spend most of my 6.5 hours there working on two case write-ups which are due on Monday and Tuesday, respectively. One, on Flying J, a gas station company, is worth 1/3 of my Marketing in the Service Sector grade so it better be good. For the other, I have to analyze the elements of consumer behavior that lead a young, male consumer, to spend more than he wanted to on a used car.<br />
<br />
Fortunately, I have a glorios food event tonight that keeps me going. At 7:00 pm I meet up with 12 MBA classmates and their girlfriends/boyfriends for an event every little girl dreams of (or at least, this little girl): a whole Pig Roast at Citizen Public House and Oyster Bar! <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZrkwCfHg2zc/T_Bc3xBfjRI/AAAAAAAAAiI/6i3MpuZtzg0/s1600/Pig+roast.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZrkwCfHg2zc/T_Bc3xBfjRI/AAAAAAAAAiI/6i3MpuZtzg0/s320/Pig+roast.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Glorious pig roast at Citizen Public House</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
What a feast it was! Not only did we get an entire roast pig (head, feet, tail and all!) but the accompanying sides were obscene. They included oysters, clams, shrimp, bacon and cheese grits (a literal vat of it), salad, spicy green beans and more that I can't even recall. There was so much food and drink that night that it would be impossible for it not to be amazing. Also, I was with a bunch of foodies, which made it way more fun as we all fought for the ears, cheeks and other such parts of the pig that many of my other friends would look at in disgust.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-z_2Ml1IPL3E/T_BdbLxmDEI/AAAAAAAAAiQ/FzybcPXXyTw/s1600/pizza.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-z_2Ml1IPL3E/T_BdbLxmDEI/AAAAAAAAAiQ/FzybcPXXyTw/s320/pizza.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My comfort food staple in Boston: New York Pizza</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
My week wraps up on Sunday with another morning and early afternoon spent at Snell Library working on textbook reading assignments, case write-ups and more. I break around 5:00 pm to grab some New York Pizza before heading to the laundromat to do laundry and then home for a night cap of more homework. Good thing I am officially half-way done with the semester!<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">*The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Northeastern University, Ocean Spray Cranberries, either entity's staff or affiliates. </span><br />
<br /></div>Katrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2302762057772415045.post-58819845944851358932012-06-27T19:19:00.000-07:002012-06-27T19:19:01.451-07:00Memorial Day<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zpSdXRVr0SI/T-u1ZnoW4tI/AAAAAAAAAhU/jbJOVRflR1g/s1600/memorial+day.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zpSdXRVr0SI/T-u1ZnoW4tI/AAAAAAAAAhU/jbJOVRflR1g/s320/memorial+day.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Memorial Day Installation</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b>Third Week of Summer Semester</b><br />
<i>(May 21- 28)</i><br />
<br />
Monday I get to do some substantial work on two new Craisins<sup>®</sup> packaging initiatives. I have a great meeting with the team where I learn all about new concepts like nuisance fees for slotting at retailers, swapping products on shelves, the Ocean Spray Innovation Leadership Team (ILT) and more.<br />
<br />
Halfway through my day I meet with a Marketing Manager to learn about our MRF system (the system we use to request new UPC codes for products and packaging). She shows me the form I need to complete and graciously spends an hour explaining the process, how the organization of 'eaches', 'cases' and 'shippers' works and more. I'm not going to say I'm an expert after the meeting (I think I'll have to practice a few UPC requests first) but the session helped a ton.<br />
<br />
The rest of my afternoon is spent at a meeting for a new foods product and working on several projects.<br />
<br />
That night in my Marketing in the Service Sector class we discuss a topic that is near and dear to my heart: The Mass Audubon Society. After my Graduate Marketing Club consulting project for the Massachusetts Horticultural Society last year I'm particularly interested in non-profit preservation societies. How funny that this one is in Massachusetts also!<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gM_hx2w8JvY/T-u1qYegwWI/AAAAAAAAAhc/EFuxfns8faw/s1600/turtle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gM_hx2w8JvY/T-u1qYegwWI/AAAAAAAAAhc/EFuxfns8faw/s320/turtle.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Turtle friend at Ocean Spray - Photo courtesy of Nick Klatte</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Tuesday I have my weekly 1:1 session with my boss. We discuss a ton of topics including how Ocean Spray's Pool financial planning works (as an agricultural cooperative we have a fiscal year <i><b>and</b></i> a pool year), she handed off some great new projects to me and answered my numerous other questions.<br />
<br />
The rest of my afternoon is literally booked from 1:00-4:30 pm with meetings. On the itinerary? A weekly meeting for a new Craisins<sup>®</sup> package, a meeting to discuss our Craisins<sup>®</sup> challenge (where I actually get to contribute some of the suggestions I made for my Innovation and Enterprise growth project on Six Flags to the conversation!), a conference call with a company that puts on large active events such as 5K runs and a training session for a new MRF system (the day after I learned the old system!).<br />
<br />
That night in class my group and I have our article presentation. Fortunately, it's on a an article all of us had already read in our Brand & Advertising Management class last semester called "Getting Brand Communities Right". How convenient! I felt our presentation went quite well but as the first group to go, only our grade will tell. <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jBpszyuf7UA/T-u12Cxt6II/AAAAAAAAAhk/N732bCEciXA/s1600/geese.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jBpszyuf7UA/T-u12Cxt6II/AAAAAAAAAhk/N732bCEciXA/s320/geese.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The baby geese of Fenway are growing up!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Wednesday is a slightly more quite day on the work front. I don't have any meetings, which is shocking, so I get the day to really get down to work.<br />
<br />
In class that night, we discuss Starbucks and how it is the 'gold standard' of empowering employees and creating exceptional service environments. In particular, we talk about how the coffee chain actually gives baristas stock in the company, how they require executives to train as baristas and more. While I'm a Dunkin' Donuts girl at heart, I now have a greater appreciation for 'the Bux'. <br />
<br />
Thursday is a particularly fun day at work! I start out my morning with a weekly Marketing huddle in the Marketing lounge. I love these half-hour sessions because it allows the team (from assistants to directors) to share what they have been working on in a casual environment.<br />
<br />
In between the rest of my work that day I also get to have my buddy lunch. Yay!<br />
<br />
In class that night my fellow Northeastern MBAs and I analyze the entry of Cleopatra soaps (a French brand) into Canada. It was actually pretty neat to talk about because they are discussing entering the province of Quebec. Having now become a Montreal expert (well, at least in the realm of poutine) I feel like I can bring some real life experience to the class discussion.<br />
<br />
Friday marks the official start of summer hours at Ocean Spray! As part of the amazing perks of working for the company, starting Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day employees get half day Fridays! Woohoo!<br />
<br />
However, this means I have to be super efficient because I have half the time to do the work I need. I get in early to try and get as much done as possible while it's still quite in the office.<br />
<br />
Because I'm so busy, I don't get to leave at 12:30 pm, but even staying a couple of hours later lets me get a ton more work done and I still get to shut down the ol' laptop at 2:30 pm (not too shabby). On my way home, I stop by Target to grab some treats for my boyfriend since he's coming to visit from Montreal (included in my haul? Two flavors of Craisins<sup>®</sup> and two flavors of Ocean Spray gummie snacks - my new addiction).<br />
<br />
I then work really hard to get as much homework done as possible, with a few breaks to clean up my apartment. In particular, I work on my portion of my team's Consumer Behavior project paper and presentation, some reading and more.<br />
<br />
Nick arrives in the city around 9:30 pm and we head straight to our ritual New York Pizza run followed by drinks at Parish.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Z4441DLXAtY/T-u2MkatJ6I/AAAAAAAAAhs/2-3WqX7V2XA/s1600/os+visit.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Z4441DLXAtY/T-u2MkatJ6I/AAAAAAAAAhs/2-3WqX7V2XA/s320/os+visit.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yup, I work here.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
On Saturday Nick and I sleep in embarrassingly late (like noon). I get up and start doing some homework. Once we finally drag ourselves outside we grab some breakfast at Dunkin' Donuts and hop in my car for a drive down to my Lakeville to show Nick the gorgeous setting of my work. Needless to say he is super impressed! He keeps saying how it looks like a country club. Personally, I'm happy to be able to wander some of our nature trails and take in the local wildlife. <br />
<br />
After our Ocean Spray visit we decide to make a day adventure of this and drive another 45 minutes south to New Bedford for some authentic Azorean food. New Bedford actually boasts one of the largest Azorean populations in the United States (more than 50% of the city's residents are of Azorean descent!). We get an obscene amount of pork product and chat with some other guests as we all fawn over the serving sizes.<br />
<br />
That night Nick and I indulge in an On Demand movie, <i>Young Adult</i>, and then I work on some more homework. <br />
<br />
Sunday I wake up and complete a couple of hours of homework so that I can relax for the rest of the day. Nick and I head over to Fenway so that I can show him that there<b><i> are </i></b>Mexican Food restaurants in Boston. Our destination? <a href="http://www.elpelon.com/">El Pelon Taqueria</a>. We order up some pretty delicious Pescado and Caramelos tacos and we enjoy them in the outside seating area.<br />
<br />
All fueled up on the native food of our California homeland, Nick and I walk down to The Boston Public Garden and Boston Common to visit the Memorial Day installation and lounge in the sun. Let's just say, you know you've been a recluse when 15 minutes in the sun gives you a sunburn! Nick and I cool down with some soft serve dipped cones from the Boston Frosty truck and hop on the T back home.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0BUEbcCIqwo/T-u3AA9MgcI/AAAAAAAAAh0/k3z8-iwvsvw/s1600/darryls.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0BUEbcCIqwo/T-u3AA9MgcI/AAAAAAAAAh0/k3z8-iwvsvw/s320/darryls.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Groupon success at Darryl's Corner Bar & Kitchen</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
We pass the next few hours with me doing some homework and Nick lounging until our 7:30 pm reservation at <a href="http://www.darrylscornerbarboston.com/">Darryl's Corner Bar & Kitchen</a>. Despite being located around the corner from my apartment, it took a Groupon deal for me to finally experience this awesome restaurant. For $32, Nick and I share an appetizer of the most amazing wings I've ever had (try sweet peach chile and buffalo flavor), followed by my first ever chicken and waffles (anytime I can put syrup on my dinner entree, it's a win in my book).<br />
<br />
Monday is a glorious day off! Nick and I get up and grab breakfast after I get a couple of hours of homework in. We then head to Target for some shopping before he has to leave to make the drive back up to Montreal. As soon as he drives off I head right to Panera for a working lunch/dinner with one of my Consumer Behavior teammates as we work through the paper portion of our presentation for Tuesday.<br />
<br />
When I get home I plug away with more homework before crashing after a much-needed relaxing weekend.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">* The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Northeastern University, Ocean Spray Cranberries, either entity's staff or affiliates.</span></div>Katrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2302762057772415045.post-26295200144523957432012-06-16T17:08:00.002-07:002012-06-16T17:08:53.181-07:00A Super Busy Week Ends with a Superhero Brunch<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-N4tVRunhpBA/T90XH6UK5lI/AAAAAAAAAgw/0Gl8NgBQrPc/s1600/Boston.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-N4tVRunhpBA/T90XH6UK5lI/AAAAAAAAAgw/0Gl8NgBQrPc/s320/Boston.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Just another beautiful Boston afternoon</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b>Second Week of Summer Semester</b><br />
<i>(May 14 - 20)</i><br />
<br />
Monday I start my morning with a great training session with the Senior Manager of Commercialization Projects at Ocean Spray. She has offered to train me on our Product, Package, Price Change Authorization system ( PPPCA) which is used for chartering and getting new projects through the stage gate process. <br />
<br />
After my training, I head downstairs for my HR benefits orientation. Since I'm now officially full-time I get the benefits of, well, all the great Ocean Spray benefits.<br />
<br />
After the orientation I get a few minutes back at my desk before meeting my boss for lunch and store visits. I'm super excited for this lunch and learn. We head to Panera for some grub before stealthily perusing the aisles of Shaw's and Walmart to scope out our Craisins<sup>®</sup> products and our competitors. It was very helpful and provided some great insight into what the dried fruit market looks like.<br />
<br />
After my fun lunch session, I meet with a logistics manager to discuss all the potential merchandising vehicles for Craisins<sup>®</sup>. As part of my project to streamline these different shippers, clip strips and more I figured I'd meet with an expert to get his input.<br />
<br />
The rest of my afternoon is spent getting a good amount of work done before heading to class.<br />
<br />
On the itinerary for my Marketing in the Service Sector class tonight is a discussion of <a href="http://www.aussiepm.com.au/">Aussie Pooch Mobile</a>, an Australian company that pioneered a mobile dog cleaning service. Among the issues facing the company are whether or not they should continue their franchise internationally and how to handle a slew of new competitors. <br />
<br />
Tuesday morning I start my day getting some work done before a training session for NCH - a company that handles many of our coupon offers. Since I recently submitted a Craisins<sup>®</sup> coupon request through NCH, I'm particularly interested in this training session so that I can learn how to review the redemption rates of these promotions and use that to help track my budget and how well the program did.<br />
<br />
After the training session I have a half-hour meeting with a Marketing Manager to get a grounding on two new packaging projects I'll be helping her with. I think both are great ideas, but one in particular I'm super excited about and can't wait to help out with.<br />
<br />
After lunch I meet up again with the same Marketing Manager and her entire team for a weekly meeting for the packaging projects I just learned about.<br />
<br />
After that it's off to another new product meeting, this time for a new foods item. I'm loving being a part of all these innovative new Ocean Spray products!<br />
<br />
Next is my weekly 1:1 with my manager. She gives me tons of awesome new projects to work on, including digging deep into Nielsen data to analyze some new competitors and working on setting minimums in our new merchandising vehicle ordering system by looking at past order volumes.<br />
<br />
In my Consumer Behavior class that night I have to give my Topic Talk! How Topic Talks work is that I am responsible for finding a current news article (less than one year old) that directly pertains to our reading and lesson plan for the day. I am able to find an awesome article on how touch impacts consumer purchase behaviors. We also get to share our experience with interviewing a friend or family member on what is in their 'medicine cabinet'. I interviewed my Mom and had some great insights from her choice of makeup, face washes and shampoos. <br />
<br />
Wednesday I get all morning to work on my projects before my first meeting at 11:00 am. I've been invited to a session put on by Brand Connections, a vendor we have used in the past for Craisins<sup>®</sup> sampling. We learn all about their capabilities, including ad placement on airplanes, cruises and more. <br />
<br />
After the meeting I get several more hours of work in before another Meet and Greet with our Insights Manager. She gives me the low-down on what her group does and the OSCAR system on our intranet that houses nearly all of the consumer research Ocean Spray has done for the past several years. When I have the time, I totally intend to go through and read as many of those documents as possible. I imagine it would be an amazing way to learn about the company.<br />
<br />
In my Service Sector class that evening, we actually discuss the Shouldice Hospital case, which I did last year for my Operations class. It was neat to look at it from a very different perspective (service sector marketing versus operations). <br />
<br />
Thursday is a busy day of meetings. I start out with a weekly marketing team huddle in the marketing lounge. I love these huddles because it gives the group a chance to get together in a casual setting (couches and plush chairs in the lounge) and share what everyone has going on in their respective businesses.<br />
<br />
After the huddle I head to my meeting with an Associate Trade Marketing Manager to get a sales perspective on my effort to try and reduce Craisins<sup>®</sup> merchandising vehicles. <br />
<br />
I spend most of the rest of my day in meetings to continue this effort. I meet with a Marketing Manager who performed this same task several years previously and followed by another meeting with the person in charge of ordering the trays, stickers and clip strips for Craisins<sup>®</sup>.<br />
<br />
My work day ends with an awesome introduction to consumer affairs at Ocean Spray. The Consumer Affairs Supervisor graciously set up an hour-long introduction to how we handle consumer complaints, requests, compliments and more. It was really fascinating.<br />
<br />
As I'm leaving work and checking my e-mail, I notice that a classmate of mine was kind enough to send over a recent article in CFO magazine featuring Ocean Spray's very own CFO! How cool (and how cool of her!). Check out the article here <a href="http://www.cfo.com/article.cfm/14638244/c_14639338?f=magazine_alsoinside">http://www.cfo.com/article.cfm/14638244/c_14639338?f=magazine_alsoinside</a>.<br />
<br />
That night in my Consumer Behavior class we discuss the Cyworld case. Cyworld is the South Korean equivalent of Facebook. We had a large case write-up on it due as well where we had to decide how the company should proceed in the face of growing member defect rates and a loss of interest in their paid digital home page decorations. Here's the U.S. version of the site <a href="http://us.cyworld.com/">http://us.cyworld.com/</a>. <br />
<br />
Friday is a great day! I start off my day with a Craisins<sup>®</sup> meeting where we discuss business insights such as key account performance and past research conducted by consumer insights.<br />
<br />
I also get the opportunity for two amazing meet and greets; one with the Director of Marketing and one with the Director of New Business Development. It was awesome to speak to two women who have been so successful in the organization and have seen the business change throughout the years. Amazing!<br />
<br />
The day wraps up with lunch with my Ocean Spray buddy and another meeting with demand planning to look at the Craisins<sup>®</sup> merchandising vehicles. <br />
<br />
My Saturday morning starts, how else, but with the day in the library? I roll into Snell Library at 10:30 am and spend most of my day working on my team's paper and PowerPoint for our article presentation on <i>Getting Brand Communities Right</i>. It was great because we actually covered this article last semester in Brand & Advertising Management so it really helped me dive deeper into it's meaning.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MDtLqof-gP0/T90XZKvUJuI/AAAAAAAAAg4/Ov8mN1uckVU/s1600/Cafeteria.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MDtLqof-gP0/T90XZKvUJuI/AAAAAAAAAg4/Ov8mN1uckVU/s320/Cafeteria.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cafeteria: makers of glorious burgers</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Fortunately, I have some great motivation to get my work done because I have a date with my library compatriot for dinner and drinks at Cafeteria. I get an amazing burger topped with a fried egg and bacon along with some amazingly delicious beverages (including one called Spring Break that comes with rock candy as a stirrer). Win!<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zJa7HfUtvBI/T90ZYQm8xPI/AAAAAAAAAhA/Hk5t7enwoeQ/s1600/Downtown.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zJa7HfUtvBI/T90ZYQm8xPI/AAAAAAAAAhA/Hk5t7enwoeQ/s320/Downtown.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beautiful!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Sunday starts out in a way that can only be described as 'super' with <a href="http://www.blueincboston.com/">Blue, Inc.</a>'s first ever superhero brunch. I make my way downtown to this new restaurant run by a chef that was featured on Hell's Kitchen. I get there a little earlier than my friend so I meander around the parks downtown and take in the heavenly weather.<br />
<br />
Once my friend arrives we enjoy cocktails that smoke with dry ice, an appetizer of fresh cinnamon donuts paired with nutella mascarpone and raspberry jam followed by my entree of red velvet french toast topped with cream cheese icing (yes, you read that correctly: red velvet french toast!). Oh, and did I mention that all of this was served by a wait staff dressed in superhero costumes!<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-v5Ax-aXBkL8/T90a8J31neI/AAAAAAAAAhI/rlTDqfcCqTc/s1600/Blue+Inc.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-v5Ax-aXBkL8/T90a8J31neI/AAAAAAAAAhI/rlTDqfcCqTc/s320/Blue+Inc.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
After our embarrassingly decadent brunch my friend and I head to the library for some serious studying, which includes a ton of reading, case preparations and more. At least I have the sugar rush to keep me going!<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">*The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Northeastern University, Ocean Spray Cranberries, either entity's staff or affiliates.</span><br />
</div>Katrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2302762057772415045.post-59627663701344892982012-06-04T19:46:00.002-07:002012-06-04T19:46:44.854-07:00My First Employee Off-Site Event<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1IzjtFH_9k8/T81jSUpJXoI/AAAAAAAAAf0/ZFJlcLxHDOA/s1600/bog.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1IzjtFH_9k8/T81jSUpJXoI/AAAAAAAAAf0/ZFJlcLxHDOA/s320/bog.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ocean Spray Bog at Patriot Place</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b>Week 1 of Summer Term</b><br />
<i>(May 7-13)</i><br />
<br />
Monday marks doomsday; the start of what will be the most challenging two months of my graduate school career. If you recall, I now work full-time, as well as take a full course load in the evenings. I am more than a little nervous about the whole thing.<br />
<br />
My first day of my first full-time week opens up with some budget reviews. I had set up a meeting with someone in sales to help me understand some of the program budgets that pertain to her work with stores such as BJ's, Sam's and Costco.<br />
<br />
After that wraps up I head to a meeting to discuss some new packaging options we are working on. I make sure to take notes and understand all of the elements of the program as best I can as this will be one project I will be expected to eventually take over.<br />
<br />
After the meeting lets out I have just a few minutes at my desk before a group 'Meet and Greet' with the commercialization team. We all gather in our cozy Marketing lounge area and I get to meet several of the members of the commercialization team at once . They are all super nice and the meeting is a great way for me to see who I might be working with in the future as each new product launch and even package redesign requires a commercialization manager. In fact, I already know one of the attendees from meetings for a new foods product we are trying to launch. <br />
<br />
After lunch I head to the Board Room (a quite fancy looking conference room with paintings of important-looking executives placed on every wall) for some more training on our budget management software. It's pretty complex and my notebook looks like a mess of notes when I leave.<br />
<br />
The rest of my afternoon is spent working through all of my projects, with a nice break around 3:00 pm for another 1:1; this time with a Senior Marketing Manager that I had met previously during my interview process. I use the opportunity to hear all about her work at Ocean Spray over the years and the several new products and package redesigns she has worked on. She had amazing insights into some of the projects I'm working on as well.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1pQPRF3szT8/T81qsyr6W0I/AAAAAAAAAgI/FNGeehPuse8/s1600/office.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1pQPRF3szT8/T81qsyr6W0I/AAAAAAAAAgI/FNGeehPuse8/s320/office.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leaving the office. Isn't it pretty?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
After work I head right to campus for my first night of class of the Summer Semester. I'm taking Marketing in the Service Sector on Mondays and Wednesdays. Tonight we get the general overview of the course and I start to adjust to what my schedule will be like for the next two months.<br />
<br />
Tuesday is a day of 'Meet and Greets'; I have three lined up! These meet and greets include meeting with a Social Media Specialist (which is right up my alley!), a session with the Manager of Digital Media (another topic that I adore) and finally a meeting with the Senior Manager of Product Development, where I even get to try some prototype Ocean Spray food products (super win!).<br />
<br />
In between all of these awesome meetings I attend training on a new Material Request Form process (e.g. how to request UPCs for new products and packaging), have my weekly 1:1 with my Manager to check in on how I'm doing and a group meeting with the sales team to discuss merchandising vehicles for Craisins<sup>®</sup>.<br />
<br />
That night is my first Consumer Behavior class of the semester. The professor seems great and tells very entertaining stories - essential when your class is from 7:30-9:30 pm after a long day of work. <br />
<br />
Wednesday is the start of my very first off-site work meeting ever! I'm super stoked for the two-day event at <a href="http://www.patriot-place.com/">Patriot Place</a> with the Marketing team at Ocean Spray. Plus, I get to sleep in just a tad longer since the commute to Patriot Place is slightly shorter than to our corporate offices. When I arrive, I slide into the meeting room in time for some mingling, Ocean Spray juice and coffee.<br />
<br />
The kick-off to the two-day meeting has several marketing managers presenting trends and recent findings for each product segment. This is then followed by the Innovation Team presenting on competitors, trends in the market and more.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7AQrG5P1rNE/T81q3oOqowI/AAAAAAAAAgQ/ZDNrk7UITxY/s1600/scavenger.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7AQrG5P1rNE/T81q3oOqowI/AAAAAAAAAgQ/ZDNrk7UITxY/s320/scavenger.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Scavenging: Me with Toby Keith's Guitar (and an Ocean Spray juice, of course)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
We break after about three hours for lunch in the <a href="http://www.marriott.com/hotels/travel/bospp-renaissance-boston-patriot-place-hotel-and-spa/">Renaissance Hotel's</a> swanky lounge. We make sure to eat up because next is a professional scavenger hunt game put on by <a href="http://www.cashunt.com/cashunt.html">Cashunt</a>. The game is super fun and involves two hours of locating 100 items, gold coins, getting video footage of bystanders doing conga lines with us and more! My favorite part? Getting to see, first hand, the Ocean Spray sponsored bog behind Bass Pro Shop. It was simply gorgeous. I just wish I could have taken my time to explore it- but scavenger hunt duty calls!<br />
<br />
After the hunt, we get the results on the rankings from the eight teams, and would you believe it, one of the Ocean Spray teams turned out to be the highest scoring team of the year for Cashunt and are now invited to their national competition! How fun!<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tsD45RBcAks/T81pxpiqQ9I/AAAAAAAAAgA/mAVL41ZEC1c/s1600/cocktails.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tsD45RBcAks/T81pxpiqQ9I/AAAAAAAAAgA/mAVL41ZEC1c/s320/cocktails.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Signature Ocean Blue cocktails made with Ocean Spray Blueberry Juice</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
After our fill of scavenging, we have about an hour to go up to our rooms (did I mention this is an overnight event and I get my own room? Fancy!) and prepare for our mixology class and awards dinner. We spend the next several hours learning about the Foods service business of Ocean Spray, as well as indulging in H'ordeuves and signature Ocean Spray cocktails ranging from the 'Ocean Blue' to the 'Classic Cosmo'.<br />
<br />
Dinner follows as does the awards ceremony. It was a perfect event and wonderful way for me to casually mingle with all of my new coworkers. I simply loved it!<br />
<br />
I end my night with some textbook reading before passing out, exhausted from a great day.<br />
<br />
Thursday I'm up early for breakfast at the hotel and to start our Marketing Department engagement survey discussion. You see, Ocean Spray conducts employee engagement surveys every couple of years and now we are looking at the most recent set of data. I think it speaks volumes that a company is willing to truly invest the time to take in employee feedback.<br />
<br />
This all wraps up around 12:00 pm and I head home. I am told that I can had a free half-day (oh the glory!). In that extra few hours I am able to finish up my homework for class this week, do a ton of errands and other such things. My productivity made me happier than you know.<br />
<br />
In Consumer Behavior class that night we discuss a case on Volkswagen's 'New' Beetle and have some friendly debate on how it should or could have been positioned to the market to successfully leverage the brand's history. <br />
<br />
Friday I'm back in the office. I close out my week by continuing to review budget items and trying to figure out our budget management system. Fortunately, my day is broken up with a meet-and-greet with the sales planning manager (I love meeting all these new people!). It's super informative and opens my eyes to all the complexities that an agricultural cooperative must consider in planning (hint: fruit availability and usage is a huge factor).<br />
<br />
I go home that night and just lounge. I promise I tried to do some homework but I was just too worn out from my first of many long weeks during the Summer Semester (but hey, I survived!).<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-i39VqYu_C8s/T81tQXzxVXI/AAAAAAAAAgg/uWtDgXhqH6g/s1600/library.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-i39VqYu_C8s/T81tQXzxVXI/AAAAAAAAAgg/uWtDgXhqH6g/s320/library.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A slightly less appealing view than the bog...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Saturday is the start of a less-than-fun weekend for me. On the menu: five textbook chapters, three cases to read and prepare for class, a project proposal, topic talk presentation, a paper on consumer self perception and an additional case with a 6-7 page write-up attached to it - and two days in which to do all of it. Cue panic.<br />
<br />
I'm into the library that morning by about 10:00 am after running a couple of errands. I stay in that library until 5:30 pm, breaking only for a quick respite at Au Bon Pain for lunch.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3_IpqukN_y0/T81tC9jeGdI/AAAAAAAAAgY/ab7Y83kbrxo/s1600/mint+julep.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3_IpqukN_y0/T81tC9jeGdI/AAAAAAAAAgY/ab7Y83kbrxo/s320/mint+julep.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mint Julep at Citizen Public House (in honor of the Derby last week)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
After 7.5 grueling hours, my library study compatriot and I decided that another break is needed so we make our way to Fenway for drinks and appetizers at <a href="http://www.citizenpub.com/">Citizen Public House and Oyster Bar</a>. <br />
<br />
Sunday morning I'm back at Snell Library for some more powerhouse studying. But besides all that homework stuff I also manage to return some old textbooks for refunds, order a delicious pasta take-out meal from <a href="http://www.blackjackpasta.com/">Black Jack Pasta</a> using <a href="http://www.seamless.com/">Seamless</a> and enjoy it while doing my laundry at the laundromat.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">* The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Northeastern University, Ocean Spray Cranberries, either entity's staff or affiliates.</span></div>Katrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2302762057772415045.post-89544254020110712052012-05-26T10:56:00.000-07:002012-05-26T11:00:49.057-07:00My (Kinda) Graduation<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4E94AbJcpcE/T8AumWVkmWI/AAAAAAAAAe8/B9O7d6BVuYw/s1600/Grad+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4E94AbJcpcE/T8AumWVkmWI/AAAAAAAAAe8/B9O7d6BVuYw/s320/Grad+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<b>Break Week</b><br />
<i>(April 30- June 6)</i><br />
<br />
Well blogosphere, it's my semester break this week and, sadly, the only 'time off' I'll be getting between school and starting work full-time. Fortunately, I have some exciting things to occupy me.<br />
<br />
On Monday I head in to work (my boss has graciously allowed me to swap my Friday of work for Monday so I can participate in my graduation ceremony). The big event on my calendar today: a makeshift National Craisins<sup>®</sup> Day in response to National Raisin Day. In an effort to take over the 'holiday' we hand out samples to employees with coupons for them to pass on to friends, initiate a "Make the Swap" contest online and even hand out freshly baked Oatmeal Craisins<sup>®</sup> White Chocolate Chunk cookies and milk. Yum! <br />
<br />
Besides all the fun activity surrounding the event, I also get some great exposure to new systems including our financial management program and the accruals process for budgeting. I make sure to pay extra close attention because pretty soon I will be tasked with managing the foods budget.<br />
<br />
I round out my day with some more deep-dives into Nielsen data and what it tells me about dried cranberry consumption in our key accounts across the United States.<br />
<br />
That night, after days of anxiously checking Northeastern's Blackboard system, I am pleased to see that Spring Semester grades are up. Amazingly, I somehow manage to get the highest GPA of my MBA career, and during my most stressful semester at that! Phew! This will have to buffer me for my Summer I term...ugh. <br />
<br />
Tuesday I head into work again (it's been kind of nice to work three days in row - it almost feels like I'm full time!). It's a long day but a rewarding one. With my mounting responsibilities and trying to learn all the ropes, my day runs more than 10 hours. Included are some calls with prospective vendors who want to do sampling events for Craisins<sup>®</sup>, editing some Facebook and Twitter posts, reviewing the budget, a new foods product meeting and more! Phew! <br />
<br />
As a nice break I get to have lunch with my Ocean Spray 'buddy' in the cafeteria. We catch up on our weekend activities and what's happening in the world of cranberry Foods and Beverage.<br />
<br />
After a day of powering through tons of projects, I am happy to say my Tuesday ends with five days of break, free from school and work. I remind myself to savor it since it's the only semblance of a vacation I'm getting before the real world hits.<br />
<br />
But, true to form, my grandiose ideas of sleeping in and watching TV all day are quickly brought back to reality. I spend the first day of my 'break' on Wednesday running errands to get ready for my parents arrival and graduation. I go to the doctor, get a haircut, get my nails done and pick up my cap and gown (which involved me entering the Cabot Recreation Center for the first time!) <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qI9byvRAtX0/T8AwdXbUULI/AAAAAAAAAfE/GbR_zbgG7gY/s1600/RMV.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qI9byvRAtX0/T8AwdXbUULI/AAAAAAAAAfE/GbR_zbgG7gY/s320/RMV.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Waiting to hear my number; it's nice to know that some things never change, regardless of what state you're in.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
On Thursday I'm up early to head to the Boston Registry of Motor Vehicles (RMV) to officially surrender my California drivers license and become a Massachusetts state resident. As I sit in the waiting room listening for my number to be called I get a little sad that I'm renouncing my California-ness. While I've lived in other states before, I never officially became a of resident of anywhere except the Golden State. At least I get a new drivers license photo.<br />
<br />
After I finish up at the RMV I clean my apartment, stop by CVS for some last minute items and get ready to pick up my Mom and Stepfather from Boston Logan Airport at 2:00 pm.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-d0zYJ3ayMvI/T8AxmGRFz1I/AAAAAAAAAfM/OTS0q7GjOIA/s1600/Mom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-d0zYJ3ayMvI/T8AxmGRFz1I/AAAAAAAAAfM/OTS0q7GjOIA/s320/Mom.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mom and Stepfather at Faneuil Hall</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
After I manage my first drive to the airport in my new ride, my Mom, Stepfather and I somehow manage to make it to the historic <a href="http://www.faneuilhallmarketplace.com/">Faneuil Hall/Quincy Market</a> area for a late lunch at <a href="http://www.unionoysterhouse.com/">Union Oyster House</a>. It's supposedly the first restaurant in America (founded in 1826) and my Mom was dying to go after seeing it featured on the Food Network. But, I have to say, while the chowder was good, the rest of our meal was lackluster at best, and the service was pretty poor (even at 3:00 in the afternoon). Oh well, it was fun and we follow it up with a tour around the powerful <a href="http://www.nehm.org/intro.html">Holocaust Memorial</a>, Faneuil Hall and Quincy Market before I take them to see my tiny studio home of the past two years, and drop them at their hotel.<br />
<br />
I then head to meet my Dad, who flew in a couple of hours earlier. I join him at <a href="http://luccabackbay.com/">Lucca Back Bay</a> (not my fave, but it's conveniently located) for drinks at the bar, dinner for him and dessert for me. It was so fun to catch up! I then proceed to show him my new car and my apartment, which has undergone some decorating improvements since he last saw it on moving day September 2010. <br />
<br />
After that I bid my Dad goodnight and hit the hay. I have to be awake to pick Nick up from the airport by 7:00 am tomorrow morning; not to mention it's Graduation day!<br />
<br />
Friday is the big day! The day I (kinda) graduate from the Northeastern MBA program. I say 'kinda' because as I know all too well, I still have two classes to complete during Summer I, while working full-time. I am anything but 'done' with the program. Nonetheless, I am a huge fan of formalities, ceremonies and other such fanfare so I'm going to try my best to pretend away (if only for today).<br />
<br />
I start my graduation day very early (like, out of the house at 6:00 am early) so that I can pick Nick up from the airport. I'm so grateful for him to have flown out to Boston just for the weekend to see me walk. After I grab him from Boston Logan (man, having a car makes this process so much easier!) we go home and crash for a couple hours. <br />
<br />
At around 10:30am Nick and I head to <a href="http://www.colonnadehotel.com/">The Colonnade Hotel</a>, where my Dad is staying, for graduation breakfast at <a href="http://www.brasseriejo.com/">Brasserie Jo</a> with the whole family. I have been wanting to go here for quite some time so I'm happy to have an excuse. Since it's a French restaurant I feel it only fitting to order up some breakfast crepes!<br />
<br />
After we wrap up, I head back to the apartment to primp before my graduation ceremony. I have to report to our MBA station outside of Matthews Arena by 2:00 pm. <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-L9iO2OP8vKI/T8Ay1mgNWCI/AAAAAAAAAfU/SRXd2NQH5Ao/s1600/Grad+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-L9iO2OP8vKI/T8Ay1mgNWCI/AAAAAAAAAfU/SRXd2NQH5Ao/s320/Grad+1.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hanging out in the graduation tent before entering Matthews Arena</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Of course, we really didn't need to get there until probably an hour later but it was still nice to mingle with all the graduates outside of Matthews Arena and say goodbye to many people who are leaving the area for great job opportunities in other states/countries.<br />
<br />
The ceremony itself was nice and brief. David Ferriero, the 10th Archivist of the United States, gave our commencement address. The whole process was done before 5:30 pm. <br />
<br />
After the ceremony lets out, I participate in some obligatory photos in front of Dodge Hall before heading into the Graduate Business School reception party. It was so fun to introduce my family and boyfriend to everyone who has been so influential during the program and who have helped me so much, career-wise.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-sDcUjz6iZgg/T8A0GoQaEFI/AAAAAAAAAfc/s55g52U2ud8/s1600/Sibling+Riv.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-sDcUjz6iZgg/T8A0GoQaEFI/AAAAAAAAAfc/s55g52U2ud8/s320/Sibling+Riv.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It wouldn't be a blog post without some pictures of food!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
By 6:30 pm, I bid my Northeastern colleagues adieu and head to my graduation dinner at<a href="http://www.siblingrivalryboston.com/"> Sibling Rivalry </a>(my favorite!). I loved being able to share a great restaurant with my family and liked it even more given the fact that it lasted well into the night. <br />
<br />
Saturday I'm up relatively early again. I grab a Dunkin Donuts breakfast with Nick before we meander over to Fenway Park for my first ever Red Sox game! My father was generous enough to buy the whole family tickets to see the Sox play against the Orioles. While the Sox lost, I had an amazing time eating ball park fare,buying an obligatory Red Sox baseball cap and enjoying all of the fans. <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lONiucZQbLM/T8EaKZgjvhI/AAAAAAAAAfo/G_NjS-lA53U/s1600/Fenway+with+Nick.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lONiucZQbLM/T8EaKZgjvhI/AAAAAAAAAfo/G_NjS-lA53U/s320/Fenway+with+Nick.jpg" width="239" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Look at that snazzy Sox cap!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
After the game, my Mom and Stepdad head over to Harvard University to check it out (though I think Northeastern is FAR more interesting) and I show my Dad my future Fenway apartment.<br />
<br />
We then walk back to the Colonnade where I get a lovely graduation gift and see the mini confetti cannons that were intended for my graduation ceremony (that didn't arrive in time). You see, my Dad owns a company that manufactures confetti and confetti cannons for large-scale events like concerts, sporting events, etc. and he was going to shoot them off during my ceremony. Alas, they will have to be reserved for another time.<br />
<br />
At around 7:00 pm we head to Newbury Street to meet my Mom and Stepdad at <a href="http://www.cafeteriaboston.com/">Cafeteria </a>where we spend a good while drinking Sangria and enjoying 'Tray Chic' comfort food. <br />
<br />
We then wander over to the <a href="http://www.traderjoes.com/">Trader Joe's</a> to show my Sepdad (a Trader Joe's employee for the past 40+ years) the smallest store in the country. It was such a blast to see how excited he was to explore the store and chat up all of the employees.<br />
<br />
Sunday I get to sleep in. My parents both left early today but said I was off the hook to drive them to the airport. I spend the majority of the day running some errands with Nick, grabbing a movie at the Fenway theater (we saw <i>The Five-Year Engagement</i>) and grab lunch at <a href="http://www.temptations-cafe.com/">Temptations Cafe</a> before I'm forced to drive him to the airport. After he leaves I'm left with nothing but homework, homework and more homework for my first week of Summer semester.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">*The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Northeastern University, Ocean Spray Cranberries, either entity's staff or affiliates</span>. <br />
<br />
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<br /></div>Katrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2302762057772415045.post-42576709467227382502012-05-16T16:40:00.000-07:002012-05-16T16:40:02.523-07:00The End of Spring Semester<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<b>Sixteenth Week of Class</b><br />
<i>(April 23- 29)</i><br />
<br />
Monday morning I head to campus to *gulp* buy my books for Summer I (I really can't stand to face it yet!), then plug along at my final presentation for Brand & Advertising Management that my team is giving to our client: Henniker Brewing Company. After working independently for the morning, I meet several of my group mates at 2:00 pm to practice, finalize the paper, and edit our PowerPoint presentation. We work right up until the presentation at 7:30 pm. In fact, I have to break away for a minute to grab our guests from the parking structure while the rest of my team keeps editing our slides (talk about cutting it close!).<br />
<br />
Fortunately, I think our presentation goes quite well and we are the only team whose company actually attended the presentations. Our client loved our ideas and even gave us some sweet Henniker Brewing branded clocks! <br />
<br />
Tuesday I head to Lakeville for the fourth week of work. On my 'To Do' list for today: writing a promotional piece for our Ocean Spray intranet in support of our National <i>Craisins<sup>®</sup></i> Day celebration! It was actually super fun to write (even if it was just a couple of paragraphs) and reminded me of the the good ol' days of reporting for newspapers. <br />
<br />
I also get trained on our financial management system as pretty soon I'll be taking over tracking of the foods budget (Yikes!). Fortunately, I get a one-on-one session with our resident expert and I'm starting to feel a little more confident.<br />
<br />
The rest of the day is spent knee-deep in Nielsen data pulls and meetings for a new foods product.<br />
<br />
After work I head to campus for my final Entrepreneurial Finance class! Tonight, we get our hefty business plans back. After much nervous anticipation, I am thrilled to see an A- scrawled across the back page. I'm actually quite proud of the assignment because I did it completely on my own (well, with the help of some tutors, but still!).<br />
<br />
When class lets out at 8:30 pm, a group of students heads across the street to Conor Larkin's for celebratory drinks! Several of the part-time students in our little gathering completed their last class as soon as we stepped out of Entrepreneurial Finance. Many of them have been juggling full-time work, a part-time MBA and family for the past 4+ years! Wow...and I thought I was busy!<br />
<br />
Wednesday I get up to run some errands (including some indulgent personal beautification in the form of a manicure) before dragging myself to the library to complete my last deliverable of the semester: a new product development process audit. Let me just say, you know it's been a crazy semester when you and your teammate can't even fit in starting a final paper, 15-pages long, worth 35% of your grade, until three days before it's due. My teammate and I can't even be mad at ourselves because we literally have been running around like mad women since day one. I spend the next 5+ hours locked in Snell Library plugging away at my portion of the paper. I am happy to say that just two days after starting our new product audit, we somehow manage to hit submit on it tonight! I can't believe I'm done! What a semester. Honestly, how did I survive?<br />
<br />
Thursday is a glorious day. I sleep in way later than I will admit, run some errands, meet my friend for celebratory and good-bye cupcakes at <a href="http://www.crumbs.com/">Crumbs</a> in the Financial District, buy a graduation dress (shouldn't have but I love it!) and work on the blog, all before my last 'class' of the semester. I say 'class' sarcastically because my last New Product Development class is held at Conor Larkins (apparently my new haunt). My friend and I drop by for half an hour and enjoy a plate of nachos with our professor and classmates over beer to wrap up the semester.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-CSmmcHocsKY/T7Q2EcpNxDI/AAAAAAAAAeo/FeZo7g9c2aU/s1600/BBQ.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-CSmmcHocsKY/T7Q2EcpNxDI/AAAAAAAAAeo/FeZo7g9c2aU/s320/BBQ.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sweet Cheeks BBQ!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
After the last class of spring what else is there to do but celebrate with delicious BBQ at <a href="http://www.sweetcheeksq.com/">Sweet Cheeks</a>! I take my classmate (a Sweet Cheeks virgin) and we indulge in more BBQ pork belly, pulled chicken, broccoli cheddar casserole, baked beans and biscuits than anyone could ask for. What a way to end the semester. <br />
<br />
Friday I'm up early to head to work. My day is busy helping to wrap up final touches for Monday's Craisins<sup>®</sup> celebration (including finalizing oatmeal Craisins<sup>®</sup> chocolate chunk cookies and milk!). I also spend considerable time trying to perfect my large Nielsen data pull to analyze Craisins<sup>®</sup> trends. I update the data to incorporate the newest time period available. I also try to analyze trends across more than a dozen different stores that sell our product. It's great practice for me!<br />
<br />
I also get my first training at how to code invoices to track against our marketing budgets. I can't believe I'll be in charge of tracking the Craisins<sup>®</sup> and sauce budget once I start full time. I, of course, take copious notes and probably ask way too many questions. <br />
<br />
With all these numbers, data pulls and more, I don't leave the office until most everyone is already gone. <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HEa-LEAmy8g/T7Q2NdbVyAI/AAAAAAAAAew/bs1O9oOQL_w/s1600/Breakfast.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HEa-LEAmy8g/T7Q2NdbVyAI/AAAAAAAAAew/bs1O9oOQL_w/s320/Breakfast.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Extremely necessary...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Saturday morning I get up not for a homework session at the library, but for brunch with a friend (did I mention how happy I am that the semester is over?). Our restaurant of choice is <a href="http://towneboston.com/">Towne Stove and Spirits</a>. I order up some of the most amazing blackberry scones ever with devonshire cream. Other items for our brunch include the most delectable lemon chiffon pancakes (I'm in love) and some requisite brunch mimosas. Funny how much I enjoyed this restaurant considering I thought it was a sporting goods store for the majority of my MBA program (whoops!).<br />
<br />
After brunch my friend and I go window shopping (when was the last time that happened!?). I then follow up a morning of food with coffee with another friend (a former MBA classmate who graduated last year). I haven't seen her in ages so we decide to meet at <a href="http://tridentbookscafe.com/">Trident Booksellers and Cafe</a>. This bookstore actually has a pretty stellar cafe menu, but today iced coffee, coffee cake and catching up are what are on the table for me.<br />
<br />
After a couple of hours, I bid my coffee compatriot adieu and meet up with my friend from this morning. Thus commences an evening of On Demand movies, New York Pizza delivery and celebratory vino. Man, I could get used to this whole 'weekends free' thing.<br />
<br />
Sunday is down to business - errands wise. I start out by picking up the last of my Summer I textbooks (ugh!), along with some Northeastern University apparel (I'm getting all nostalgic as graduation approaches). I then go grocery shopping, do some laundry and wrap up my evening by cooking a legitimate meal and working on the blog. What a lovely weekend!<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">*The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Northeastern University, Ocean Spray Cranberries, Inc., either entity's staff, subsidiaries or affiliates.</span></div>Katrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2302762057772415045.post-31905805304142537232012-05-07T19:31:00.000-07:002012-05-07T19:31:06.412-07:00Marathon Monday and How I Became a True Bostonian<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Y2te0hpLkNE/T6h2v0P9KjI/AAAAAAAAAds/YuSM-StLsWw/s1600/Marathon.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Y2te0hpLkNE/T6h2v0P9KjI/AAAAAAAAAds/YuSM-StLsWw/s320/Marathon.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Marathon Monday! </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b>Fifteenth Week of Class</b><br />
<i>(April 16 - 22) </i><br />
<br />
Monday is a holiday exclusive to Massachusetts: Patriot's Day (also
known as Marathon Monday). I love this day off not only because, well,
it's a day off, but because the city comes alive with the 25,000
marathon runners making their way from Hopkinton to the finish line in front
of the Prudential Center. I simply adore watching the power of human
motivation as these runners suffer through 26.2 miles of agony. Standing on the sidelines and watching
them is enough of a workout for me.<br />
<br />
After I get my
fill of these super fit athletes I head home for a small respite before
meeting up with several of my classmates for dinner at <a href="http://bashosushi.com/">Basho Japanese Brasseri</a>e in Fenway.
It was quite good (particularly the steamed pork buns and shishito
peppers) and I really enjoy that I have the time on this Boston holiday to go out and socialize with my classmates (I've been a verifiable
recluse the past month or so).<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bvwhL3Q0PTk/T6h7Fp2AAUI/AAAAAAAAAd4/-gmq9ophofE/s1600/OS+Truck.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bvwhL3Q0PTk/T6h7Fp2AAUI/AAAAAAAAAd4/-gmq9ophofE/s320/OS+Truck.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Ocean Spray truck was at work today! </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Tuesday marks my third week at work! I spend the day continuing my research on different types of printing methods for some of our Craisins® packaging. Who would have thought that my new job at Ocean Spray Cranberries would make me an expert on the differences between Roto Gravure and HD Flexo printing processes?<br />
<br />
Further along my adventures in printing technology I begin looking at the cost differences of the two methods and how each measures up in regards to Craisins<sup>® </sup>packaging. I even get to meet some new people in procurement to discuss the options and look over tons of printing samples (fun!). <br />
<br />
After work I head to Entrepreneurial Finance. Fortunately, there are no more assignments due for the rest of the semester, so I just enjoy our class discussion while nibbling on Ocean Spray's new Cherry Juice Infused Craisins® with my classmates.<br />
<br />
When I get home, I start the final edit of our Six Flags innovation paper (you might recall that our presentation was last week, but the paper is due tomorrow). The task, which I anticipated might take an hour, ended up taking triple that! Ugh! It's quite late by the time I pass it along to the rest of my group and then hit the hay.<br />
<br />
Wednesday I'm up early for my 9:30 am meeting with the Director of Enterprise Solutions and Delivery for Northeastern University. Even though my last Mastering Business Intelligence class was on Saturday my final field report on Northeastern's IT system is due tomorrow. Fortunately, this session with the Director is actually quite fun! I actually get to go inside the Christian Science Center tower, up to the 23rd floor where Northeastern has offices. Not only is the meeting super helpful for my assignment, and the Director very generous with his time, but the view from his office is stunning! <br />
<br />
After the session, I head right to campus to finish up my edits on the field assignment while it's all still fresh in my mind. Then, it's off to Reprographics to print and bind the final version of our Six Flags innovation paper (coming in at a whopping 30+ pages!). After I have the sucker in my possession I head to to my final Innovation and Enterprise Growth class where I watch the last three groups present their innovation portfolios for companies such as The Ritz Carlton Hotel and Research in Motion.<br />
<br />
When class lets out it's right to Snell Library to get cranking on my portion of our Brand & Advertising project for Henniker Brewing Company. I'm meeting my group at 6:30 pm tonight for a powerhouse working session but need to fine tune my sections beforehand.<br />
<br />
Once I meet with my team, I'm already tired, but alas, we spend another three hours (until 9:30 pm) finalizing the paper. <br />
<br />
Thursday is a day dedicated to my Brand & Advertising final project. I take over a table in the library with one of my teammates from early morning until our New Product Development class at 5:20 pm that night. We are busy all day designing a mock Facebook page, Twitter account, logos, tap handles and more. I definitely make use of my Adobe InDesign talents today! In fact, I only take a couple of breaks from the project to work on my case readings for New Product Development and for a meeting with the Director of Program and Student Services of the Graduate College of Business.<br />
<br />
My meeting with the Director was a last-ditch effort to try and petition for a Summer II class to count towards my Marketing concentration. You see, with work starting full time in just a couple of weeks, and two classes left in my MBA program, I was trying to spread out my course load across both summer terms, so I would only have to take one at a time. Alas, the meeting does not go well and I am left with no other choice than to take a full course load during Summer I (class Monday through Thursday!), while working full time and commuting two hours a day.<br />
<br />
<br />
I'm not going to lie, when I heard the final decision I was so upset I just tried not to cry in front of the Director. I was so overwhelmed and exhausted from the semester that I just didn't know what to do. I left the office only to run into some staff from admissions and, without even meaning to, just started to tear up in front of them. I just don't know how much more work I can take at this point.<br />
<br />
With the stress of a full course load and full-time work weighing on my shoulders (not to mention the financial implications of paying for another class with such short notice and telling my new boss about my change of plans) I have to head right back into the lion's den and work on my Brand & Advertising project for the next several hours and still go to class tonight. I also resign and sign up for my second summer course: Marketing in the Service Sector, and send the professor an e-mail informing him of my situation (I already have to miss the second class for a work event). I guess on the bright side, I will now be graduating at the end of June, instead of August (hey, I gotta grasp onto something positive).<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VsLJoWV15do/T6h72880AvI/AAAAAAAAAeA/vBzz7Fjecwk/s1600/OS+view.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VsLJoWV15do/T6h72880AvI/AAAAAAAAAeA/vBzz7Fjecwk/s320/OS+view.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This view during lunch is exactly what I needed to de-stress</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Friday is another day at the bog (well, <i>near </i>the bog). On the itinerary for today? I continue to work on my large Nielsen data pull for Craisins® research, attend some exciting new product meetings, and get my very first 1:1 session for work. You see, Ocean Spray has this great on-boarding process for new employees which includes more than a dozen one-on-one meetings with key staff across several different departments. Today I get to meet with the Director of Global Insights. The meeting is super informative and the Director gives me a lovely overview of her department and how my role will interact with Global Insights. <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lAJZSNWh6r4/T6h-p52me-I/AAAAAAAAAeM/DculYX3MNSU/s1600/ticket.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-lAJZSNWh6r4/T6h-p52me-I/AAAAAAAAAeM/DculYX3MNSU/s320/ticket.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I guess this makes me an official Bostonian</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
After this long week I am happy to join my friend after work at <a href="http://flourbakery.com/">Flour Bakery</a> in the South End. I even find a parking spot right in front of the cafe! We spend the next hour or so catching up and indulging in sweets (OK, maybe it was just me that ate a massive cupcake).<br />
<br />
I offer to drive my friend home in my new ride but as we approach my car and its 'primo' parking spot what do I find? A parking ticket! I have never gotten a ticket in my life and now, the first time I park on the street in Boston, I get that awful orange piece of paper. It's all I can do to laugh at my continued bad luck this week.<br />
<br />
After dropping off my friend I rush home to clean up before Nick arrives for the weekend. <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OlPjD6iWlEg/T6h_65f75gI/AAAAAAAAAeU/CVRY54Zxttg/s1600/Breakfast+club.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OlPjD6iWlEg/T6h_65f75gI/AAAAAAAAAeU/CVRY54Zxttg/s320/Breakfast+club.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Saturday morning Nick and I get up for brunch at <a href="http://dinetheory.com/tbc/">The Breakfast Club</a> in Allston. It's quite cute with an 80s theme and my shaved sirloin eggs Benedict with spicy hollandaise is just what I needed. We even snag complimentary coffee mugs in honor of the restaurant's 10th anniversary.<br />
<br />
After we get our fill of breakfast goodies, Nick and I head to my new apartment in Fenway for a tour. I arranged to be let in so Nick and I can take some measurements for furniture, etc. Lucky for us, the current tenant had done the same thing and remembered many of the dimensions off the top of his head. <br />
<br />
The apartment visit is followed by an afternoon showing of <i>The Hunger Games</i> and then dinner and drinks at recently-opened <a href="http://www.yardhouse.com/MA/boston-restaurant/">Yard House</a> in Fenway. I was pleasantly surprised with the drink selection (more than 130 beers on tap!) and the variety of food at the restaurant. I order up a trio of tacos ranging from Korean BBQ beef to Baja Fish. Yummy!<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hgu6oc2OPnA/T6iBEOfRrnI/AAAAAAAAAec/fZcJLULVR2o/s1600/stella.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hgu6oc2OPnA/T6iBEOfRrnI/AAAAAAAAAec/fZcJLULVR2o/s320/stella.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Duck Confit Hash n' Eggs at Stella</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Sunday it's time for another brunch outing; this time to <a href="http://www.bostonstella.com/">Stella</a> in the South End. I must say, for all its hype, I was a bit underwhelmed with their duck confit hash n' eggs. Nonetheless, I enjoy my last meal with the BF before he heads back to Montreal and I head back to my books.<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">*The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Northeastern University, Ocean Spray Cranberries, either entity's staff or affiliates.</span><br />
<br /></div>Katrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2302762057772415045.post-17904818611865773782012-04-29T18:06:00.002-07:002012-04-29T18:06:46.349-07:00My Beta Gamma Sigma Induction and Last Saturday Class Ever!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GAr_svVNaJg/T53QV98vmrI/AAAAAAAAAdU/JcB3j-sD0KY/s1600/BGS.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-GAr_svVNaJg/T53QV98vmrI/AAAAAAAAAdU/JcB3j-sD0KY/s320/BGS.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Getting inducted into Beta Gamma Sigma's Honor Society</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b>Fourteenth Week of Class</b><br />
<i>(April 9 - 16)</i><br />
<br />
I spend Monday morning cramming for my Global Management final, finishing up my business plan for Entrepreneurial Finance and working on my assignment regarding Wikibrands for Brand & Advertising Management. I have so much to do in so little time that I actually set a timer for myself for each of these tasks, allotting no more than an hour for one, two hours for another, etc. Is this what my life has come to?<br />
<br />
Fortunately, my Brand & Advertising Management paper was actually pretty painless to complete since I picked my very own Ocean Spray Cranberries to analyze. It was fun to spend time browsing my company's Facebook page, Twitter feed and more.<br />
<br />
The Global Management final was pretty much a disaster from what I can tell. I sat down feeling pretty good about it but as soon as I started scanning the short answer questions I knew I was in trouble. For some reason I couldn't remember which countries were part of APEC, had no idea what prospect theory was and pretty much just felt like I winged it on half the questions. At least it wasn't only me caught off guard. As I entered the grad lounge after the test and saw the concerned faces on all of my classmates I knew I could at least hope that the curve would help me.<br />
<br />
But I don't have much time for dilly-dallying. I head right back to the library to continue my work on my business plan and the financials I promised my Six Flags innovation team.<br />
<br />
I also download my tickets for graduation on May 4th! Can you believe it? Unfortunately, I'm only allowed three tickets and now have to try to squeeze an extra out of a classmate for Nick to attend the ceremony.<br />
<br />
At around 6:30 pm I grab some dinner and then head to Brand & Advertising Management. It was actually a pretty fun session as all of my classmates discussed the different Wikibrands they covered, from Nike to Ann Taylor and more.<br />
<br />
Alas, when I get home it's back to more homework (this time for my deliverable in Mastering Business Intelligence due tomorrow) and a late bed time.<br />
<br />
Tuesday I'm up early to start my second week at Ocean Spray Cranberries. On the schedule for the day is filling out forms to run a coupon promotion, continuing to plug along on some Nielsen data pulls (I'm still trying to learn all the nuances of the program), and starting to work on an employee event scheduled for April 30th. I'm happy that I get to have some tasks to complete autonomously as I head down to the cafeteria to meet with the cafe manager to discuss offering oatmeal Craisins® white chocolate cookies and milk for the festivities. In between all of this I manage to sneak away for lunch with my Ocean Spray buddy. We catch up on my experience at the company thus far and find out more about each other. I love that Ocean Spray has arranged this buddy program; it really makes me feel more comfortable in the organization.<br />
<br />
After work I rush back to campus for my Entrepreneurial Finance class. Fortunately, after last week's massive business plan deliverable, we don't have anything else due for the rest of semester! I also fulfill my new duty for my classmates and bring chocolate covered Craisins® for our evening snack.<br />
<br />
Wednesday is a busy/fun/stressful day! I'm at it early with a morning meeting with my Six Flags innovation team to practice our presentation which we will deliver in just a few hours! Yikes! After all semester preparing, I can't believe the day is already here.<br />
<br />
After a bit of practice and fine-tuning of our slides, most of my group heads over to the Frost Lounge in Ell Hall. The occasion? Our final Career Center lecture series. Today the room is packed because the session covers salary negotiations! We even have a special guest speaker who is a hiring manager for a recruiting company. She provides us with a very relevant set of slides outlining how to wrangle the difficult and awkward task of asking for a higher salary. Even though I already have a job, it is very helpful and I'm glad to offer up some of the insights I gained from my experience with my recent hire.<br />
<br />
As soon as the lecture lets out, I bolt to Dodge Hall for our Six Flags presentation. We are the first team up. Oddly enough, this is the first group presentation of my entire MBA program that I have NOT presented in. With such large groups for the project, our professor allowed us to select just a few presenters. I'll just thank my teammates that were up there because it's so much easier to survive a presentation from the comfort of my seat! Overall, I feel that our group was one of the best, but only time will tell. Also, while it was stressful to get everything in order to present the first day, it also gives us the opportunity to edit our paper to incorporate feedback from the professor before the final is due next week.<br />
<br />
After class I have just under an hour before I have to be in the Curry Student Center Ballroom for the spring honors ceremony. You might recall that I was here last year to receive the Stephen Riley Memorial Scholarship. This year, I'm here to be inducted into Beta Gamma Sigma's honor society. The event honors both undergraduate and graduate students and is super fun with complimentary h'ordeuvres and drinks. It is also fun to catch up with professors from previous semesters.<br />
<br />
After the ceremony, a friend and I grab a slice of New York Pizza and spend the rest of the evening chatting about her impending move to Florida for a new job!<br />
<br />
Thursday is dedicated in large part to my Brand & Advertising Management final project on Henniker Brewing Company that is due in just a couple of weeks. I meet up with one of my teammates for a working session in Snell Library. We spend most of the day creating mock-ups of Facebook pages, Twitter feeds, Groupon specials and more.<br />
<br />
I also shoot off the first draft of my Mastering Business Intelligence Field Report on Northeastern out to Northeastern's Director of Enterprise Solutions and Delivery. The Director and I are able to set up a time for next Wednesday to meet and review it (just a day before the final is due!).<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cW2Ev8plhTg/T53XyoaadXI/AAAAAAAAAdg/7_Ajt-yAMAA/s1600/NPD+class.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-cW2Ev8plhTg/T53XyoaadXI/AAAAAAAAAdg/7_Ajt-yAMAA/s320/NPD+class.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Student Entrepreneurs at the Husky Startup Challenge Demo Day</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
In New Product Development that night we revisit an old case from earlier in the year, this time addressing sustainability. We are also in for a little treat: Our professor allows us to leave class early if we promise to head over to the Curry Student Center for Northeastern's 2012 Husky Startup Challenge Demo Day. Hosted by the Entrepreneurs Club, the event boasts more than a dozen student groups all vying for funding for their business idea. There was free food, fun business concepts and I even got to cast my vote for my favorite company! Fun!<br />
<br />
Friday is another day at Ocean Spray headquarters! I start my morning with another great presentation by our key executives including the Chief Operating Officer! We hear all about fruit consumption and sales projections, updates for the North American market and more. I also get 'officially' introduced to the company.<br />
<br />
The rest of my day is taken up with meetings for our big Craisins® marketing promotion, another session of our ongoing meeting for new foods products and some secondary research that I get to conduct on different printing methods for our Craisins® packaging. <br />
<br />
Saturday morning starts off with my last one-credit class of the semester (hallelujah!). The entire class had a deliverable due earlier this week on the Information Technology systems of an organization of their choosing. As I just started at Ocean Spray and didn't want to bother them, I opted to cover Northeastern University. I quickly determined that this was horrible idea since Northeastern is essentially several companies in one. Anyway, we all received our feedback and discussed the issues we came across in class, along with other insights we gathered. We also discuss a case on a Boston-based sports apparel company, KL Enterprise.<br />
<br />
When class lets out my two friends in the class and I trudge, exhausted, across the street to my new favorite sandwich shop, <a href="http://www.temptations-cafe.com/">Temptations Cafe</a>, for an hour of venting before the two of them have to head back to campus for another four hours of a Financial Statement analysis class (I do NOT envy them). It was nice to chat with them, particularly since both of these friends will be moving away from Boston shortly to start their new jobs. <br />
<br />
Once they leave me I commence the first relaxing weekend I've had in far too long. Let's just say the remainder of my Saturday is spent watching copious amounts of Netflix (and I don't feel guilty about it at all).<br />
<br />
Sunday I decide I should at least attempt to get some errands done since most of them (grocery shopping, laundry, etc.) have become collateral damage to my insane schedule the past few weeks. So I head to the laundromat, hit up the grocery store (by driving to it in my NEW car!), visit Target, etc. etc. I then close my evening by putting some final edits to my Innovation and Enterprise Growth paper and sending it off to my teammates for compilation into the paper.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">*The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Northeastern University, Ocean Spray Cranberries, Inc., either entity's staff or affiliates. </span><br />
<br /></div>Katrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2302762057772415045.post-70744521469337996342012-04-23T08:25:00.002-07:002012-04-23T08:25:51.015-07:00My First Week at Work, an Easter Spent in the Library and a New Apartment!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bn8IkBmfJDg/T5Sl4oE3gxI/AAAAAAAAAc8/LMp8zvR072k/s1600/flowers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bn8IkBmfJDg/T5Sl4oE3gxI/AAAAAAAAAc8/LMp8zvR072k/s320/flowers.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tulips on Campu<b>s</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b>Thirteenth Week of Class</b><br />
<i>(April 2 - 8)</i><br />
<br />
Monday is a big day for presentations: the final part of my group's Market Entry Project is due to be presented to a panel of judges during our Global Management class. Yikes!<br />
<br />
But before I start worrying about that, I spend the morning working on as much homework as possible in anticipation of how little time I will have once I start at my new job tomorrow. While up to my eyeballs in assignments, I receive an e-mail with a draft copy of my ad from the photo shoot I did a
couple of weeks ago. I think it looks great, but I make sure to distribute it to
both my former and future boss for their approval. The add will be
featured in GMAT test prep materials for anyone who takes a course from
Princeton Review. It's pretty cool, but I'm also a little abashed about the whole thing.<br />
<br />
At 12:30 pm my Market Entry team for Global Management meets me in a reserved room in Snell Library to practice our presentation before class at 1:45 pm. We are all a bit nervous as it's our second to last deliverable for the class and we have to look good in front of international business consultants. Fortunately, I think our presentation goes quite well (despite being the first in the class up to bat). It's also such as relief to have that done with and be able to move on to the next major assignment I have to complete.<br />
<br />
I spend the rest of my afternoon engrossed in more work until 7:30 pm when I make my way to Brand & Advertising Management. While there are no deliverables in the class today I still feel the pressure mounting for our huge consulting project for Henniker Brewing Company which is due in just a few weeks. <br />
<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rpTYn7HP_IQ/T5SmC72fd2I/AAAAAAAAAdE/b1zNT5F0ow8/s1600/Ocean+Spray+Headquarters.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rpTYn7HP_IQ/T5SmC72fd2I/AAAAAAAAAdE/b1zNT5F0ow8/s320/Ocean+Spray+Headquarters.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
Tuesday is monumental because it is my first day at Ocean Spray Cranberries as an Assistant Marketing Manager! As you can imagine, I am up WAY earlier than necessary to make sure my outfit is perfect, that I have all of the necessary documents in order, that my lunch and dinner are packed (remember, I have to go straight to class after work) and then I head out to my new car to make the 45 minute drive to Lakeville. Eeek!<br />
<br />
Now, I don't want to sound cheesy, but as I maneuver my car down the winding, half-mile drive across ponds and around trees to the beautiful Ocean Spray corporate offices I can't help but feel a bit like I'm in a dream.<br />
<br />
My first day is fabulous and I just keep pinching myself at how lucky I got with this job. First: I have my own cube that is about the size of my studio, second: it's lined with Craisins<sup>®</sup> products of all varieties, third: the atmosphere of the office is so peaceful, etc. etc. (I could go on).<br />
<br />
During my first day I get great introductions to my new boss and department, get to sit in on a meeting about Craisins<sup>®</sup> packaging (and get to provide some input!), meet my Ocean Spray buddy, mingle with another recently hired Assistant Marketing Manager and, of course, I definitely make use of the Cranberry Cafe for lunch. Love it! <br />
<br />
After work I head straight to campus for Entrepreneurial Finance. Fortunately, class is made a little more fun as I come bearing gifts to my classmates in the form of Craisins<sup>®</sup> Trail Mix from work. <br />
<br />
One Wednesday, while I don't have 'official' Innovation and Enterprise Growth class, my day is still busy. You see, in lieu of a formal lecture, each innovation team was allotted 20 minutes to meet with our professor to discuss the status of our impending projects. While initially nervous for our professor's feedback, my team comes out of the session feeling like we are somewhat ahead of the game. But don't worry, that definitely doesn't mean we're resting. In fact, we have an impromptu group meeting in the stairwell to discuss next steps.<br />
<br />
Unfortunately, I can't stay long because I have a meeting with a realtor to start the daunting task of looking for a new apartment. Ugh...<br />
<br />
While I am normally the type of person who take pleasure in prowling Craigslist for apartments when I don't need them and finds the idea of a weekend at open houses the epitome of fun, apartment searching is very low on my mind right now. Unfortunately, this is not my first Boston real estate rodeo and I am aware that April is already late for finding a September 1st place so I have to make time for it. Unfortunately, three apartments I called on were already rented (within 1 day of being posted online) and I got a call at 9:30 am this morning saying not to bother meeting an agent for my 10:00 am appointment because the apartment had been rented that morning. Yikes!<br />
<br />
Luckily, I did manage to snag a 2:30 pm appointment with a realtor to check out a place in the South End. The one bedroom, while in a great location on Columbus Ave, is far too dark for my taste with only two small windows in the entire apartment so I politely tell the agent that I'll keep looking. <br />
<br />
After the appointment it's back the grindstone working on a deliverable for New Product Development on the Braun Syncro Shaver, reading for my Saturday class on Persuasive Communication with B2B Customers (I have a presentation to give), and reaching out to any and all mothers I know to interview them for my portion of our Six Flags innovation on child care facilities.<br />
<br />
I also plug away with more contacts for apartments...and of course, after finding a possibility and trying to set up an appointment for tomorrow to view it, it is rented within a few hours and my viewing is cancelled. <br />
<br />
Thursday I am up early to meet with one of my teammates for Brand & Advertising Management work on our consulting project for the brewery. After a while of that, I force myself to move on to my impending deliverable for Mastering Business Intelligence (my third Saturday class). <br />
<br />
The field report is due next Tuesday and, unfortunately, I took on the challenge of covering Northeastern University's IT system. I am definitely regretting that decision now that I see that school is essentially a dozen companies in one. After struggling for a while, I shoot my professor an e-mail asking for some guidance and am made even more nervous when his response suggests I should have contacted the Chief Information Officer of the school. Ugh! Is it possible to fail a pass/no pass class? <br />
<br />
At 4:00 pm I make my way to the Grad Lounge to meet my team mate for Persuasive Communications with B2B Customers (my second Saturday class) so we can review our plan for our presentation this week. She generously agrees to put our slides into a program called <a href="http://prezi.com/">Prezi</a>. I had never heard of the program before today, but after seeing what it can do and how snazzy it made our PowerPoint, I think I'm a convert! So cool!<br />
<br />
My team mate and I don't have long to marvel at our Prezi slides before I have to head over to unknown territory at Northeastern: The Law Building. You see, today, our New Product Development class is a joint session with a law class on intellectual property. How cool! I particularly enjoy the session because one of my fellow co-ops from GE who worked in the legal department for the summer just so happens to be in this law class! What a small world. We spend the session mainly discussing one of the worst ideas I have ever heard: a sandwich in a can, duly named "<a href="http://markonefoods.com/">Candwich</a>".<br />
<br />
Friday morning I'm up again for day two on the job! Today was even better than the first day because the senior level executives from each department are giving a year- end wrap-up presentation on the state of the company. What a perfect way to get an overview of Ocean Spray. They discuss everything from the success of their social media platforms, to fruit utilization, pool year forecasts and new strategic partnerships internationally. <br />
<br />
The rest of my day is spent in meetings to discuss the development of new foods products, an upcoming Craisins<sup>®</sup> campaign and more.<br />
<br />
Saturday morning I'm up early for my second and final session of Persuasive Communication with B2B Customers. My team mate and I rock the presentation thanks to a funny YouTube video and our Prezi format. <br />
<br />
After class I manage to get work done for a couple of hours before meeting a realtor at 2:00 pm to view an apartment in Fenway. While not in my dream South End location, the apartment is huge, has great light and is close to tons of shops and restaurants. It is a really tempting option for the price and I tell the realtor that I'll let her know by tomorrow if I want to put a deposit on it. <br />
<br />
After my apartment hunting ends for the day, I head back to campus to do more homework before a 5:00 pm meeting with my Six Flags innovation team. <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M-adPUSvYLk/T5SmPtR3voI/AAAAAAAAAdM/f96tE3GDibA/s1600/easter.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-M-adPUSvYLk/T5SmPtR3voI/AAAAAAAAAdM/f96tE3GDibA/s320/easter.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Look at that snazzy spreadsheet in the background!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Happy Easter Sunday everyone! And how does an MBA student spend this candy-filled holiday? In the library of course, spending hours hunched over Excel sheets for my Entrepreneurial Finance business plan which is due on Tuesday. Oh, and I also have a final exam tomorrow for Global Management, an assignment for Brand & Advertising Management due tomorrow and pretty much every other thing you could pile on me due this week. I also decided to put a deposit down on the Fenway apartment so I also have to deal with all that paperwork and financing. If you can't find me come tomorrow, I probably curled up in some corner of Snell. Uuuuggggh. At least I have Cadbury eggs to get me through the day.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">*The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Northeastern University, Ocean Spray Cranberries, either entity's staff or affiliates.</span></div>Katrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2302762057772415045.post-83096328729307497012012-04-16T19:21:00.001-07:002012-04-16T19:21:52.519-07:00The Week of a Million Group Meetings and a New Car<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-V_rF8OjXNf0/T4zQC4l8JNI/AAAAAAAAAck/LlLkaT_H57U/s1600/Flower.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-V_rF8OjXNf0/T4zQC4l8JNI/AAAAAAAAAck/LlLkaT_H57U/s320/Flower.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pretty flowers on campu<b>s</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<b>Twelfth Week of Class</b><br />
<i>(March 26 - April 1) </i><br />
<br />
Monday I'm up early and at the library to start seriously looking at my draft financial statements for Entrepreneurial Finance. You see, our deliverable for this week is to create three years of pro-forma financial statements (Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Cash Flow Statement) down to each month for the first year and each quarter for the second and third year. Since I have trouble understanding other people's financial statements, let alone creating my own for an imaginary company I created out of scratch, I am understandably nervous. <br />
<br />
Fortunately, a kind classmate, who is also the finance tutor, agreed to help me. But until our 12:30 pm meeting I'm on my own. Fortunately, I had pre-completed my write-up for Global Management during the weekend and had already read my six chapters and case for Brand and Advertising Management so I have nothing else to distract me except this.<br />
<br />
At 12:30 pm I meet up with the finance tutor and he spends the next hour or so helping me determine things like corporate tax rates, interest charges and sources of financing.<br />
<br />
After our meeting, it's off to Global Management where we have a speaker who is an expert in family business. This is perfect for our case today on Dalton Chemicals, a New Hampshire chemicals company run by a family deciding on who to lead an international expansion. We even get to watch snippets from <i>The Godfather</i>.<br />
<br />
After class I start reviewing my portion of Global Management Market Entry paper that I have to submit to my group today. I finish up, hit send and begin working on securing insurance for my new car (which I am trying to pick up this week).<br />
<br />
In Brand & Advertising Management we discuss a topic that is near to my heart: Social Media. We apply the readings for the day to a case with United Airlines after they broke a musician's Taylor guitar. You might have heard of the now famous YouTube video that musician put out? You can watch it here: <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YGc4zOqozo">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5YGc4zOqozo</a><br />
<br />
Tuesday I am up early again, still cramming on my financial Statements. Unfortunately, it appears as though I underestimated the amount of time it would take to complete the documents and spend the next 11 hours trying desperately to finish before my 7:30 pm class. Again, the only reason I finish at all is because of the kindness of another classmate who is the second finance tutor (I'm lucky I have all these smart kids in my class!). I end up sliding into class five minutes late but with no fewer than 10 pages of financial statements and roughly 10 pages of assumptions, references and exhibits. Phew!<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ebfavMF4G6g/T4zQN3MIn9I/AAAAAAAAAcs/67vitEHJokw/s1600/car.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ebfavMF4G6g/T4zQN3MIn9I/AAAAAAAAAcs/67vitEHJokw/s320/car.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My new baby!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Wednesday I'm up early again, only this time it's for a reason slightly more exciting than homework: picking up my new car! For my new job I will have to commute to areas public transportation won't take me so I had to concede and buy a car. After about five hours of signing paperwork, verifying insurance and other such administrative requirements I drive off in the first car I've ever owed! I'm feeling tres grown-up right now.<br />
<br />
When I get back into the city I manage to park it and run into my Innovation & Enterprise Growth class just a few minutes late (what is with my tardiness this week?).<br />
<br />
After class lets out I get to hear about what supposedly was a great Career Center networking event that I had to miss to secure my vehicle and I also meet up with my Innovation team working on the Six Flags project to try and come up with what our professor terms innovation 'boulders' rather than the slew of innovation 'rocks and pebbles' we have now.<br />
<br />
When I get home that night I'm emotionally drained from the day but plug away on a case for Braun's Syncro shaver, my portion of my team's Market Entry paper and readings for my Saturday class.<br />
<br />
Thursday I sleep in to the embarrassing hour of 8:00 am (it's been a while since that happened) before grabbing my Dunkin' coffee and hitting the books. It is another long and arduous day in the library, broken up only by my 5:20 pm class for New Product Development where we discuss the several potential market entry scenarios for Braun. I take profuse notes because next week's deliverable for the class involves each of us putting together a 30-minute PowerPoint presentation on just this topic.<br />
<br />
Friday is one of the most arduous days I've had this semester. I get up early, grab a coffee (turbo shot added - trust me, I'll need it) and meet the first of three groups to work on final projects which have, of course, suddenly appeared in the face of four weeks left of class.<br />
<br />
First up: my Global Management group. We work from 9:30-2:30pm on our Market Entry project that is due to be e-mailed to the professor by Sunday (presentations are on Monday). As is always the case, while we thought we would just be 'quickly' putting together our PowerPoint presentation during the session with our paper 'all-but-done', that didn't quite happen. That 'all-but-done' paper ended up getting several sections added to it, several more taken out and reduced from 10 pages to the required five. After several hours reworking our paper we finally get to the PowerPoint but are unable to finish it before we all have to separate to meet with our other, different respective groups.<br />
<br />
I grab a soda and head upstairs to a reserved room to spend the hours from 2:30 pm -7:30 pm plugging through my Brand & Advertising Management project on Henniker Brewing Company. Fortunately, we make good progress and are able to get some solid media plan costs nailed down and the remainder of the written portion of the essay distributed between the five of us.<br />
<br />
I drag myself home after that meeting for my depressing dinner of Lean Cuisine, eaten while hunched over my laptop as I research, write and edit my two portions of my Innovation and Enterprise Growth team project on Six Flags amusement parks. I e-mail my portion out to the rest of my group at the lovely hour of 12:30 am. After winding down, I don't manage to get to bed until 1:30 am...and I have to be in class at 8:00 am tomorrow....<br />
<br />
Saturday my alarm goes off at 6:45 am and I stumble around my apartment getting ready for my third Saturday class on 'Mastering Business Intelligence'.<br />
<br />
The course ends up being fine, but slightly different than what the description led me to believe. It turned out to mostly focus on information system management, much along the lines of the Information Resource Management course I took during Year 1 of the program. While not what I was expecting, it was fine and I manage to make it through the four hours and even participate.<br />
<br />
After class I grab lunch with two of my classmates at <a href="http://www.temptations-cafe.com/">Temptations Cafe</a> for an amazing panini. How have I never tried this place and it's just across the street from Dodge Hall?<br />
<br />
When I get home I work on finalizing the PowerPoint for my Global Management team and send both the paper and the slides to our professor. The rest of the day is spent working on this blog, compiling costs for my Brand & Advertising Management media plan and reading for class.<br />
<br />
Sunday I wake up at a leisurely time but do manage to get to the library for about 6 hours of reading (I had an uncommonly large amount of textbook reading to do this week). When I get home I continue to do some homework and reading before eventually going to sleep at midnight, anticipating the huge week ahead of me.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i>*The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Northeastern University, Ocean Spray Cranberries, either entities' staff or affiliates. </i></span></div>Katrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2302762057772415045.post-25834097366036985692012-04-12T19:46:00.000-07:002012-04-12T19:46:23.130-07:00Photo Shoots and Car Shopping<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-y5BTS0khVGg/T4ZIWGHu5SI/AAAAAAAAAbw/iO0kmk0eTio/s1600/spring.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-y5BTS0khVGg/T4ZIWGHu5SI/AAAAAAAAAbw/iO0kmk0eTio/s320/spring.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spring outside Dodge Hal<b>l</b></td></tr>
</tbody></table><b>Eleventh Week of Class</b><br />
<i>(March 19 - 25)</i><br />
<br />
Monday morning I'm up early for a 9:30 am meeting with a professor for the class I might try and petition called "Design Thinking for Market Driven Innovation". The meeting, held over in Ryder Hall, goes well and he even shows me the final projects from last year's class. The process books look very professional and the projects seem highly involved. While the class looks neat, I'm a little concerned about the level of commitment required since I'll be working full-time by them. I decide to contact someone I know who took the course last year and ask their opinion.<br />
<br />
After we wrap up I make a beeline to my second home (Snell Library) and plug along on homework, send some e-mails, etc. before my 1:00 pm meeting with my partner for the New Product Development process audit project. We convene in the grad lounge and after much back-and-forth trying to come up with an 'innovative' company we realize that one has been in front of us all along! Northeastern University's College of Business constantly update classes, create new majors and updates requirements and therefore is the <i>perfect </i>company to use for our audit. I immediately set about emailing the Associate Dean of the College to see if she might be able to meet to discuss the school's current innovation process.<br />
<br />
My teammate and I break at 1:45pm for our Global Management class where we discuss L'Oreal's acquisition of two Chinese makeup firms to expand into the Asian market.<br />
<br />
After class she and I continue our work until our Brand and Advertising class that night where we get a special treat: a guest speaker! Our visitor for the evening is Kelley Kassa, an expert in social media. She provides some great insight (including resources for our consulting project with Henniker Brewing Company).<br />
<br />
Tuesday morning I'm up early working on homework before an 11:00 am meeting with a guy renting out a parking spot near my apartment. After seeing the nice paved spot behind a South End brownstone I decide to sign the lease for three months (yes, they have leases for parking spots in Boston). It feels a bit silly to rent a parking spot before I even have a car, but with the competitive market for parking in Boston, you have to make a move when you can.<br />
<br />
After signing the contract, I rush to my Zipcar rental and make the drive out to Marlborough to test drive a couple of used cars. The dealership has a couple of good options and is a much less stressful experience than my last go at car shopping last weekend. <br />
<br />
I get back just in time for a couple of errands before my 5:15 pm meeting with Six Flags innovation group. After a couple of hours of group work I break for my Entrepreneurial Finance course. Due that night was my topic paper on 'non-traditional inventories in the service industry'. Among other subjects that night, we discuss our upcoming financial statements which are due next week (Yikes!).<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--k3RarXYp1w/T4ZCQvlCs2I/AAAAAAAAAbY/5raLQoBoDrc/s1600/photoshoot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/--k3RarXYp1w/T4ZCQvlCs2I/AAAAAAAAAbY/5raLQoBoDrc/s320/photoshoot.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Getting the star treatment - photo courtesy of Megan Pollock/Chris Navin</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Wednesday morning I'm up early to rush to the doctor for a 9:15 am appointment before meeting my former boss for the drive out to Waltham. What's in Waltham, you ask? Why, my photo shoot for Northeastern's new ad campaign of course! We make the drive out to <a href="http://christophernavin.com/photo/bio/">Christopher Navin's</a> impressive studio and spend the next couple of hours shooting professional poses that even include costume changes (I feel so fancy!). It was a really cool experience and I look forward to seeing the actual ad in April.<br />
<br />
I get back to campus with just enough time to steal some slices of pizza from the grad lounge for our traditional third Wednesday pizza parties before my Innovation and Enterprise Growth class at 1:45 pm.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4M7PTJtT4-0/T4ZHlq7pLbI/AAAAAAAAAbg/bWqCiPbdVSY/s1600/noche.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4M7PTJtT4-0/T4ZHlq7pLbI/AAAAAAAAAbg/bWqCiPbdVSY/s320/noche.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Noche for Restaurant Week</td></tr>
</tbody></table>After class I manage to keep my focus for a couple of hours of homework before I meet up with two friends for my first Restaurant Week session of the year! On tonight's menu: <a href="http://www.noche-boston.com/">Noche</a>. I am happy to say it did not disappoint! In fact, despite it's a little over-the-top club feel, the latin-inspired food is just the right amount of spicy. I get the lobster and shrimp enchiladas for my appetizer, the Diablo chicken with corn bread stuffing as my entree and an amazing platter of fresh churros with dulce de leche dipping sauce for dessert. All of this deliciousness for $33.12 because of restaurant week. Does it get any better? <br />
<br />
Thursday starts with some major work on my forecasting assignment for New Product Development. We have been tasked with forecasting the potential demand for a new pizza product by TruEarth (a company focused on healthy food alternatives). Since I'm having some trouble figuring out some of the required numbers, I drop by my professor's office hours hoping she can provide some guidance. While I'm grateful for her suggestions, they mean reworking almost all of my formulas. Ugh! <br />
<br />
After reworking the assignment for what feels like hours I have to break for a focus group I'm participating in at Dodge Hall. My former boss has asked members of the first-year Graduate Marketing Club to assist in suggestions for re-designing our Full-Time MBA brochure. The session generates lots of interesting insights that will make our new brochure even more helpful to prospective students.<br />
<br />
Friday morning I'm up early for a guest lecture during a make up class for Global Management. Our visitor for the session is<a href="http://stacieberdan.com/"> Stacie Berdan</a>, an expert in international careers. The lecture is super informative and it is very impressive to hear about the 50 countries that Ms. Berdan has lived and worked in during her career (talk about being a jet-setter!).<br />
<br />
After the two hour lecture, I meet up with my Market Entry team to work on our project. During the next couple of hours we manage to divide up the remaining portions of our paper and finalize the company we are going to use for entering Hong Kong (hint: it's <a href="http://www.hautelook.com/">HauteLook, Inc.</a>)<br />
<br />
After that session, it's on to another group meeting, this time for my Brand and Advertising Management project on Henniker Brewing Company.<br />
<br />
After <i>that</i> wraps up, I have just enough time to finish and submit my one-page write-up on Ms. Berdan's lecture and clean my apartment before Nick arrives for the weekend.<br />
<br />
When the boyfriend gets here we, of course, make a beeline to New York Pizza, followed by drinks at Parish Cafe (I'm really enjoying this routine!).<br />
<br />
Saturday morning I'm up early for my first "Persuasive Communication with B2B Customers" class. I'm happy to say that I really like it and am glad to have a fellow student in the class with me. I'm particularly impressed with how well the professor can keep the class's attention for the four-hour period.<br />
<br />
On top of my good class, I love that Nick meets me outside Dodge for our brunch date (I could get used to him being here on the weekends!). We head to one of our faves (<a href="http://www.theothersidecafe.com/">The Other Side</a>) for our requisite juevos rancheros and Tex Mex tango platters. Yum!<br />
<br />
After that we hop in Nick's rental car and drive out to another car dealership for some more car shopping. Nick and I spend several hours at <a href="http://www.nissanwoburn.com/index.htm">Ira Nissan</a> test driving cars and meeting with sales representatives. While I don't leave with a car that day, I do leave with a signed agreement from the dealer to bring a car from another location for me (and it's the exact one I wanted!). Hooray! It's such a relief to have this handled with just a week to spare before work begins.<br />
<br />
After a successful shopping session, Nick and I head back to Boston, watch some movies and relax.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ny1P1ZPtljY/T4eMrRv_OcI/AAAAAAAAAcc/vXbquy-lwHU/s1600/es.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ny1P1ZPtljY/T4eMrRv_OcI/AAAAAAAAAcc/vXbquy-lwHU/s320/es.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brunch at Eastern Standard</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Sunday Nick and I make our way to <a href="http://www.easternstandardboston.com/">Eastern Standard</a> for brunch. Their brisket hash and sweet bread basket are just what I wanted. Unfortunately, Nick soon has to leave to drive back to Montreal and I'm left with a 2:30 pm meeting for my Innovation and Enterprise Growth team.<br />
<br />
I spend the remainder of my weekend with the group, working through our heuristics, assigning innovations to each person to write up and working out the correct balance of our portfolio of innovations.<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><br />
</span><br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">*The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Northeastern University, Ocean Spray Cranberries, either entity's staff or affiliates.</span><br />
<br />
</div>Katrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2302762057772415045.post-56416402661239444082012-04-02T15:34:00.000-07:002012-04-02T15:34:46.167-07:00My Second St. Patrick's Day in Boston<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6Nw74tZQrbg/T3oigF-Jm5I/AAAAAAAAAa4/mBMtHL-MlkM/s1600/st+patricks+day.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6Nw74tZQrbg/T3oigF-Jm5I/AAAAAAAAAa4/mBMtHL-MlkM/s320/st+patricks+day.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A trio of Irish items</td></tr>
</tbody></table><b>Tenth Week of Class</b><br />
<i>(March 12-18)</i><br />
<br />
Well friends, while spring break was amazing, it's back to the grindstone and with my recent hire I have much to do to prepare!<br />
<br />
In true MBA form, I start my Monday back from spring break running. I'm at Dodge Hall at 8:30 am to help during an admitted students event. I always enjoy helping out at these gatherings, talking to prospective students and giving them an idea of what life at Northeastern is like. I was particularly happy to be seated next to several liberal/fine arts majors like myself! It nice to show them that, even without a business undergraduate degree, you can thrive in an MBA program.<br />
<br />
On a personal note, it was so amazing to get such great support from the Northeastern administration when they learned of my recent job offer at Ocean Spray Cranberries. It always impresses me how much this school really seems to care about me and how happy they are for my successes. <br />
<br />
After a brief breakfast, I leave the admits to their information session and steal a room in the Career Center to call Ocean Spray and officially accept their offer of employment. I discuss start dates with the Human Resources representative and am very grateful when they agree to give me three weeks to get ready before starting part-time. I will commence full-time employment on May 7th. This means I have a TON to do in three weeks (read: buy my first car, secure car insurance, a parking spot, etc.). Phew! It also means that I better do as many class assignments as possible before my start date, since once work commences I will have less time to work on my projects.<br />
<br />
I then make sure to call the other employer that I had interviewed with for a temporary assignment and let them know of my decision. They are very kind and wish me the best in my new career (how cool does it sound to say that? <i>career</i>).<br />
<br />
Once I get off the phone I head to, where else, the library to start on that goal of getting work done early. I have an optional case write-up due tonight (we can pick one of three to complete for the remainder of the semester) but since this is the first one due, I opt to finish it right away so I don't have to worry about any more case write-ups for Brand and Advertising Management.<br />
<br />
After a couple of hours of work, I head back to Dodge Hall for lunch with the admitted students. I truly enjoy chatting with them and am happy to hear that some of them have already confirmed their enrollment. It's weird to think that I will have graduated before the Class of 2014 even starts.<br />
<br />
Once I finish up my sandwich I rush off to Global Management where we discuss the issues German-based Volkswagen faced with trying to implement new supplier information management software in Japan.<br />
<br />
After class I head back to my second home (Snell Library) and put the finishing touches on my Brand & Advertising case write-up. I had to determine which of four new ad campaigns Pepsi-Lipton should be used for a multimillion dollar Super Bowl spot. I hit submit around 7:00 pm that night (just in time for class!).<br />
<br />
When I get out of class, I head to the library (yes at 9:30 pm) to send off my signed offer letter to Ocean Spray. When I get home close to 11:00 pm that night I spend a little time researching potential car options before passing out, tired but content with my day.<br />
<br />
Tuesday morning I head into work at my normal time. My boss expresses how happy she is about my new career path and tells me that I don't have to come into work anymore if I don't want to. I'm very grateful to have the extra 15 hours a week to work on homework, search for a car and generally prepare for my new job. I still stay for the rest of my day and tie up loose ends, finish up some assignments and bid farewell to the marketing department *sniff*.<br />
<br />
After work, I head to the library and receive an e-mail from a professor at Northeastern who teaches "Design Thinking for Market Driven Innovation". You see, since I will be working full-time during the summer, while still taking classes at night, I wanted courses that started as late in the evening as possible (so as not to interfere with work). I was given the option by my academic adviser to petition this course to count as a marketing elective since it starts at 7:30 pm. The professor offers to meet up and has sent me the course syllabus to give me an idea of the class content. It sounds like a great class, and one that could draw upon my past experience designing newspapers.<br />
<br />
I also get an e-mail from my lovely executive mentor congratulating me on my new job. I am truly overwhelmed with all of the support I've received lately.<br />
<br />
At 7:30 pm I head to Entrepreneurial Finance where we get back our business plans that we submitted before Spring Break. I am so happy to see that A- scrolled across the bottom of the last page! Among other things, we also start to discuss our next deliverable for the business plan: the dreaded financial statements. Yikes! We are tasked with creating three years of pro-forma financial statements for our company (including income statements, balance sheets and cash flow statements). <br />
<br />
Wednesday is a busy day! I spend my morning looking for cars, figuring out financing, and doing homework. I break at 12:00 pm for the second session of the Career Center's job search series. While I already have a job, I still think it's important to take advantage of every opportunity to learn. This session on case interviews is particularly interesting to me since I've encountered those tough questions more than once in interviews. The session is great and the Career Center even hands out free case interview books. Sweet! (super dork alert).<br />
<br />
As soon as the session lets out it's right to Innovation and Enterprise Growth where we discuss, among other things, our impending innovation project. While my group has spent considerable time generating innovative ideas for Six Flags amusement parks, we have, thus far, done little in terms of analyzing and refining them. The project is 40% of our grade so we better get going....<br />
<br />
After class lets out, I have just enough time to grab some dinner before a group meeting with my Brand and Advertising team to work on our consulting project for start-up brewery, Henniker Brewery Company. After getting several of our tasks in order, we all head to our make-up class. I will say, while I understand the reasoning behind all of our make-up classes, that doesn't make them any less difficult to cram into my busy schedule.<br />
<br />
Thursday I wake up and head to the library. I will say, it's odd not to be heading into work this morning but I am happy to have the spare time to work on my Financial Modeling with Excel assignment due this Saturday (I admit, I haven't even looked at it yet). I meet up with a classmate who has also been afflicted with 'Saturdayclassitis' due to an early-start job and we do our best to utilize all of the snazzy formulas we learned from two weeks ago to completed the deliverable.<br />
<br />
After that, we move on to preparations for our New Product Development class. Sometime during those hours of work, I get an e-mail from my former boss asking if I'd like to be featured in Northeastern University's new print ad in a GMAT test prep newsletter. She says I will have my photograph professionally taken and a short blurb written about my time at Northeastern. I'm honored and a bit abashed about accepting. I tell her I will first have to get permissions from current and former employers but that I'd be happy to help. Who would have thought that my MBA program would involve so many professional photo sessions (first Boston Business Journal and now this!)? <br />
<br />
In New Product Development tonight we discuss the results of the <a href="http://www.zaarly.com/">Zaarly</a> survey we designed (and that a student and I edited/created!). The results are interesting and we got enough respondents (roughly 120) so that we could use statistical software to analyze correlations, etc. <br />
<br />
There is no rest for the weary as I wake up bright and early Friday morning for a team meeting with my Global Management group to work on our market entry project. We secure a room in Snell and work away from 9:30 am to about 12:30 pm.<br />
<br />
After our meeting I do some more individual work and call to inquire about some listings on a parking spot for my yet-to-be-purchased car before heading downtown for my drug test for my new job.<br />
<br />
When I get home I have just enough time to clean up my apartment before my boyfriend arrives in town for the weekend. I'm super excited that he will be here for his first ever Boston St. Patrick's Day!<br />
<br />
Once he arrives we do our ritual rounds to New York Pizza and Parish Cafe before heading to bed early (remember, I have class at 8:00 am tomorrow morning).<br />
<br />
Saturday I begrudgingly get up at 6:45 am and grab my Dunkin' Donuts coffee on the way to my second, and final, 'Financial Modeling and Analysis with Excel' class. I managed to submit my assignment in time and try to take copious notes on all of the great shortcuts the professor provides.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-CbuxiTLqInI/T3oi7f0cn7I/AAAAAAAAAbA/7pk4a_TtDYY/s1600/bar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-CbuxiTLqInI/T3oi7f0cn7I/AAAAAAAAAbA/7pk4a_TtDYY/s320/bar.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lansdowne Pub - already busy at 2:00 pm!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>At 1:00 pm I head outside to meet Nick for the start of our St. Patrick's Day festivities. We walk to <a href="http://www.lansdownepubboston.com/flash/">The Lansdowne Pub</a> in Fenway to meet up with a friend of mine for a traditional Irish breakfast. Despite the nearly hour-long wait, we all agree the live music by <a href="http://www.myspace.com/dublinfreepress">Dublin Free Press</a> and hearty breakfast paired with Guinness were well worth the wait. All the energy at the pub and around the city makes me realize that there is really nowhere else in the United States I'd rather be for this holiday than Boston.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-F7Mtg_wcvJ0/T3ojIFRLb1I/AAAAAAAAAbI/zNxhcvrita4/s1600/cupcakes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-F7Mtg_wcvJ0/T3ojIFRLb1I/AAAAAAAAAbI/zNxhcvrita4/s320/cupcakes.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our Irish-themed cupcake duo from Sweet</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Nick and I part ways with my friend (for now) and head to <a href="http://www.sweetcupcakes.com/">Sweet</a> for some Irish-themed cupcakes. Fortunately for us they are featuring Irish coffee <i>and</i> a Guinness/Bailey's flavored cupcakes today. <br />
<br />
After stuffing ourselves even more, Nick and decide that a relaxing movie is in order. We hop over to Regal Fenway for an afternoon showing of 21 Jump Street.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8Xtj4za8BQw/T3ojOdHxiHI/AAAAAAAAAbQ/YO6EWQwcR9I/s1600/sweet+cheeks.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8Xtj4za8BQw/T3ojOdHxiHI/AAAAAAAAAbQ/YO6EWQwcR9I/s320/sweet+cheeks.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Amazing BBQ at Sweet Cheeks</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Since Nick and I haven't eaten enough for the day, we meet up with my friend again for dinner at <a href="http://www.sweetcheeksq.com/">Sweet Cheeks</a>. The three of us devour an amazing dinner of hush puppies, homestyle mac n' cheese and pulled pork sandwiches piled high on grilled Texas toast that would put all other sandwiches to shame. Plus, I simply adore that my beverage was served in a mason jar.<br />
<br />
After we've had more than enough BBQd meats to last a lifetime, the three of us head to <a href="http://antuanuabar.com/">An Tua Nua</a> in Fenway for some more St. Paddy's Day festivities. We snag a window seat and enjoy some Irish beverages, fun music and each others company.<br />
<br />
Sunday morning Nick and I are up early to go visit a couple of car dealerships. Alas, despite stopping by two separate locations, we strike out. I get a bit frustrated and nervous that I will have to deal with slimy car salesmen throughout this whole process. Ugh! I had really hoped to get a car this weekend.<br />
<br />
After several hours of frustrated car shopping, Nick heads back to Montreal and I head the library to hit the books. At least I can take comfort in the fact that my second St. Patrick's Day in Boston was even better than the first!<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><i>*The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Northeastern University, Ocean Spray Cranberries, either entities' staff or affiliates.</i></span></div>Katrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2302762057772415045.post-66719650811657096852012-03-28T16:14:00.005-07:002012-03-31T16:59:42.115-07:00The Job Offer<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NgzgkurAq08/T3OasHwAnYI/AAAAAAAAAao/yDu6zDUnyoA/s1600/IMG_1847.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NgzgkurAq08/T3OasHwAnYI/AAAAAAAAAao/yDu6zDUnyoA/s320/IMG_1847.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hearst Castle's famed pool</td></tr>
</tbody></table><b> Ninth Week of Semester</b><br />
<i>(March 2 - 11)</i><br />
<br />
So...Spring Break was supposed to be relaxing. Yeah, I should have known it would be hectic! Luckily, it's hectically filled with tons of visits with family, friends and, oh yeah, lots of food!<br />
<br />
On Saturday morning I stop by say my old house to say "hi" to my Dad and pick up the monster truck I will be driving for the next week (only a slight exaggeration).<br />
<br />
After that, Nick and I grab lunch at <a href="http://www.theseacasa.com/">Sea Casa</a> for some long overdue Mexican food before stopping by his parent's house for a quick visit.<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-grCR7sHT1ps/T3OT0RacjMI/AAAAAAAAAZo/QLi5Z-mlTmI/s1600/IMG_0327.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-grCR7sHT1ps/T3OT0RacjMI/AAAAAAAAAZo/QLi5Z-mlTmI/s320/IMG_0327.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chipotle Battered Tiger Shrimp at The Cave</td></tr>
</tbody></table> That night, we meet up with some of our friends for dinner at Ventura Wine Co.'s restaurant and wine tasting bar, <a href="http://www.venturawineco.com/">The Cave</a>. We partake in the fun wine sampling machines and indulge in the restaurant's equally amazing food. I get the chipotle battered tiger shrimp and a delicious Caesar salad.<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2TvKRzHvMcw/T3OUTuUujRI/AAAAAAAAAZw/yGM6rJYfuOM/s1600/IMG_0329.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2TvKRzHvMcw/T3OUTuUujRI/AAAAAAAAAZw/yGM6rJYfuOM/s320/IMG_0329.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Keeping it classy at Golf N' Stuff</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Our amazing dinner is followed up with, what else, mini golf! The four of us have a blast in the uber-kitchy Golf N' Stuff. What a great night!<br />
<br />
Sunday is a relaxing day. After lounging around for most of the day and fitting in a few bits of homework, Nick and I head over to dinner with my family at my Stepmom's house, along with Tivo'd episodes of Saturday Night Live.<br />
<br />
On Monday I wake up early to go shopping for groceries and get my cooking on! You see, I have fallen victim to that disease known as <a href="http://pinterest.com/">Pinterest</a> and have wanted to cook tons of things on the site for months. Alas, as we know, my micro studio does not have an oven and so I want to take advantage of my boyfriend's large kitchen.<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zy8RNfyzUBY/T3OVKKL8DHI/AAAAAAAAAZ4/Yhi0a_Kd0-o/s1600/IMG_0338.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zy8RNfyzUBY/T3OVKKL8DHI/AAAAAAAAAZ4/Yhi0a_Kd0-o/s320/IMG_0338.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A picture of the ACTUAL Mexican shells I made. Please, hold your applause.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>First up: Mexican stuffed shells! They turn out pretty well considering I usually can barely microwave my dinner. When Nick gets home for lunch I serve them up and get his seal of approval. Look who's miss Suzy homemaker over here! When he returns to work I head off to meet an old friend from an art history class I took years ago.<br />
<br />
My friend and I chat, grab coffee and stop by another of our friend's home to visit her new baby.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BxdXeqHluDQ/T3OVjxLlYkI/AAAAAAAAAaA/phc6IPNDsBk/s1600/IMG_0349.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-BxdXeqHluDQ/T3OVjxLlYkI/AAAAAAAAAaA/phc6IPNDsBk/s320/IMG_0349.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Katrina: Master Chef</td></tr>
</tbody></table>When I get home that night I decide I simply must bake a cake from a Pinterest recipe (see, I told you; It's a disease). I spend more than two hours coloring cake layers in different shades of pink. This was also a great success. Note my makeshift piping from a plastic bag.<br />
<br />
Tuesday I'm up early again (what's with the no sleeping in?!) and make the drive to Pasadena to see one of my best friends from High School (can you believe it's been 8 years since I graduated High School?). She's living in So-cal now and in her second year of Law school so we completely commiserate with one another on the stresses of school, looking for a job and those hefty student loans. We spend the whole day chatting, getting pastries and coffee at Euro Pane Bakery and watching episodes of Gossip Girl (don't judge) before joining her boyfriend for a late lunch at <a href="http://www.dkramen.com/">Daikokuya</a>, a famed noodle house in Monterrey Park.<br />
<br />
I don't leave my friend's apartment until 7:30 pm that night and head straight to Orange County to meet my Mom. After arriving at my Mom's house in Costa Mesa, I'm exhausted so I don't last long before falling asleep at 9:30pm.<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-a7bW9Q1FH_s/T3OWVEjVvQI/AAAAAAAAAaI/trVewDkDWEQ/s1600/IMG_0354.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-a7bW9Q1FH_s/T3OWVEjVvQI/AAAAAAAAAaI/trVewDkDWEQ/s320/IMG_0354.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">More pictures of food...</td></tr>
</tbody></table> The next morning (Wednesday) I get up early for brunch at one of my favorite Orange County restaurants: <a href="http://www.plumscafe.com/">Plums</a>. I order up a new item from the menu, a chocolate waffle topped with bananas, salted caramel, toasted hazelnuts and an abundance of whipped cream. You know, just a light meal to start the day.<br />
<br />
After that my Mom and I watch Hugo at home, shop at TJ Maxx, take a nap and go to my favorite restaurant of all time: <a href="http://www.wahoos.com/">Wahoo's Fish Tacos</a>. The place of wonders (my soul food) is home to my #1 Shrimp Taco Combo and total gastronomic happiness. <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YT2qNj0a4oE/T3OW33pvCXI/AAAAAAAAAaQ/I-AYLqhnJss/s1600/IMG_0357.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YT2qNj0a4oE/T3OW33pvCXI/AAAAAAAAAaQ/I-AYLqhnJss/s320/IMG_0357.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
I leave Orange County at 5:30pm for dinner with my University of Washington friend who I studied with in Rome. We meet up at <a href="http://eatmbpost.com/">Manhattan Beach Post</a> in Manhattan Beach for drinks and their amazing cuisine (see, I told you that I would eat my way across Southern California).<br />
<br />
Thursday morning I get up early to prepare for my phone interview with the employer interested in placing me in a co-op/temporary position at their firm. The interview goes well (I think/hope) and the position sound very interesting! Plus, a classmate of mine is currently on co-op in this same position and I know everyone working there loves it. I'll keep you posted on what comes of this potential opportunity.<br />
<br />
After I get off the phone I meet my Stepmom for lunch at <a href="http://www.sharkys.com/">Sharky's</a> for more Mexican food (gotta make up for lost time!) and catching up on the past several months. I can't believe I haven't been home since September. <br />
<br />
After lunch we grab a coffee at <a href="http://www.coffeebean.com/">The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf</a> and she leaves me to my hours of homework. Ugh! I suppose it was unavoidable...I plug away at it for the next 5 hours before meeting my Dad for dinner.<br />
<br />
We meet up at <a href="http://www.shoptheoaksmall.com/">The Oaks </a>shopping center (the 'hub' of tiny Westlake Village) for some Japanese food at <a href="http://www.bbfood.com/">Buddha's Belly</a> (one of my Dad's faves). We catch up for more than two hours and I fill him in on my job search, school, etc.<br />
<br />
On Friday I'm up early to work on some more homework while Nick is as work. I try to get as much done as possible before he gets home around 11:00am for our mini-vacation to Cambria and Hearst Castle.<br />
<br />
When he gets home we grabs our bags and spend the next four hours driving up the coast, taking in the beautiful scenery, grabbing lunch at Dukes in Ventura and ice cream at <a href="http://www.docburnsteins.com/">Doc Burnstein's Ice Cream Lab</a> in Arroyo Grande. <br />
<br />
However, all that California coastline takes a backseat to the news I receive at 4:00 pm that afternoon.....DRUM ROLL PLEASE....I, Katrina Graves, receive a job offer for an Assistant Marketing Manager position at the company I have been interviewing with for the past month! In verifiable shock it's all I can do to gather the necessary information and thank the HR representative who translated the great news to me.<br />
<br />
After I get off the phone I just look at Nick with my mouth agape. I honestly cannot believe it. How did I, the girl who applied to what felt like hundreds of co-op positions, get a job this early in the game? I spend the next several hours shivering in excitement, crying and smiling like a crazed person. I can't believe how lucky I am! The position is amazing and I am so excited to be working for a consumer goods company (and one in the Boston area at that!). I literally got everything I could have asked for in this job and more.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dfeh_hZ7x8s/T3OZsIleorI/AAAAAAAAAaY/660iwhdu5A0/s1600/IMG_1767.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-dfeh_hZ7x8s/T3OZsIleorI/AAAAAAAAAaY/660iwhdu5A0/s320/IMG_1767.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
That night, after Nick and I check into <a href="http://www.pelicansuites.com/">Pelican Inn & Suites</a>, we have a celebratory walk on the beach for sunset and dinner at <a href="http://www.blackcatbistro.com/">The Black Cat Bistro</a>.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-cinHmPoQDEc/T3OaS6wSN6I/AAAAAAAAAag/PfZH3vI3oSc/s1600/IMG_1858.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-cinHmPoQDEc/T3OaS6wSN6I/AAAAAAAAAag/PfZH3vI3oSc/s320/IMG_1858.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Only slightly larger than my studio</td></tr>
</tbody></table>On Saturday, Nick and I are up early for breakfast and our 10:00 am tour of <a href="http://www.hearstcastle.org/">Hearst Castle</a>. We take the 20-minute ride up the hillside to the palatial estate. It was a truly impressive home and the weather couldn't have been better. So happy I finally got to visit this historic site.<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wxTuZJfaUcQ/T3ObJJJo6XI/AAAAAAAAAaw/4fBIEsRp9Zk/s1600/IMG_1864.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wxTuZJfaUcQ/T3ObJJJo6XI/AAAAAAAAAaw/4fBIEsRp9Zk/s320/IMG_1864.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gorgeous indoor pools at Hearst Castle</td></tr>
</tbody></table>After our tour, Nick and I make the four-hour drive home just in time for dinner at <a href="http://www.mastrosrestaurants.com/">Mastro's </a>with his parents where I indulge in my favorite restaurant dessert of all time: butter cake.<br />
<br />
Sunday is a LONG day of travel, cancelled flights and horrible customer service at United Airlines (like, seriously horrible). I finally manage to make it home around midnight that night. What a hectic end to an eventful spring break.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">*The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Northeastern University, its staff or affiliates. </span></div>Katrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2302762057772415045.post-49580945204873943352012-03-22T10:17:00.000-07:002012-03-22T10:17:48.271-07:00A Glorious Leap Day<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jeNknn8caIg/T2oYnj7gLoI/AAAAAAAAAZI/MHpq0njBuXw/s1600/snow.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jeNknn8caIg/T2oYnj7gLoI/AAAAAAAAAZI/MHpq0njBuXw/s320/snow.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<b>Eighth Week of Class</b><br />
<i>(February 27-March 2)</i><br />
<br />
Monday morning I spend working on my business plan for Entrepreneurial Finance and my India country update for Global Management due later today. I also stop by my Finance professor's office to clarify some things regarding my business plan report. Unfortunately, I leave feeling like he wants an even more in-depth outline of costs than I initially prepared. Ugh!<br />
<br />
I plug along on my assignments until 1:00 pm when the rest of my Country Update team joins me for 45 minutes of practicing our presentation. In our Global Management course, teams were each assigned a different country to present throughout the semester. The country presented on any given week is directly correlated to the case discussion for the day. Our case today was on Nokia (a Finnish company) and a crisis management situation they had in India.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EEYA4ryMNNM/T2ocX5JuXvI/AAAAAAAAAZQ/pHtNQ3XNDcg/s1600/pic+stich.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EEYA4ryMNNM/T2ocX5JuXvI/AAAAAAAAAZQ/pHtNQ3XNDcg/s320/pic+stich.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Some photos from my India presentation</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Our presentation goes quite well and I think people enjoy the personal touch gained by incorporating my own travel photos of India taken during my International Field Study trip last May.<br />
<br />
In Brand & Advertising Management tonight our class is structured around a group discussion of individual team projects. These semester-long projects entail each group analyzing a company and working to either re-brand or create a new brand for them. My group has been fortunate enough to be working with an actual company (a Brewery in New Hampshire) as they develop their brand and get ready for a summer launch. How exciting is that? We might actually have a significant impact on the development of a brand! Anyway, the discussion goes quite well and we get lots of valuable feedback from the class, particularly related to the brewery's logos. <br />
<br />
Tuesday I'm at the library by 8:00 am, working non-stop on my business plan for Entrepreneurial Finance. I've developed an idea for an online travel service that would allow the independent traveler all the convenience of a planned tour, without having to join a large group or be restricted by a tour operators pre-planned itineraries. While it's a ton of work I actually enjoy the process and before I know it I'm encroaching on the 15-page mark (and this is just part one of the project!). Later I will have to develop complete financial statements for the company. Yeah, I'm more than a little nervous about that part.<br />
<br />
I break at 11:30 am for work, followed by my Finance class that night at 7:30 pm where I submit what turned out to be an 18-page business plan. <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sQg9KeP3_iw/T2odKJCYN5I/AAAAAAAAAZY/2l5MscigB7s/s1600/snow+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sQg9KeP3_iw/T2odKJCYN5I/AAAAAAAAAZY/2l5MscigB7s/s320/snow+2.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leap Day snow!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Happy Leap Day! Wednesday is the first semi-relaxed day I've had in weeks. I get up at the leisurely hour of 7:30 am and spend my morning doing some homework, getting a manicure, paying bills and generally do all of those 'house keeping' items that I've been just too darn busy for lately. Plus, Boston gets some Leap Day snow. Hooray! <br />
<br />
On Wednesday I was also supposed to have my second class of the Career Center job search series, this one titled "Harnessing the Power of LinkedIn". Unfortunately, it was cancelled due to lack of interest. Luckily for me, my career adviser sent me the presentation slides so I still feel like I got some nice insight into the topic.<br />
<br />
At 1:45 pm I head to campus for a meeting with my Innovation & Enterprise Growth team and our professor. Our professor has cancelled class for the day so that each innovation team can have one-on-one time with him to discuss our projects. My team is working on generating innovative solutions for Six Flags amusement parks. We spend our 20-minute session going over our nearly two dozen ideas with our professor. He gives us some great insight and helps us to reduce our idea list to the most plausible options.<br />
<br />
After the meeting, I go to CVS, get a haircut and start to pack for my spring break trip to California. As if I wasn't feeling accomplished enough, I even manage to submit my Brand & Advertising case-write up on the stylistic properties of advertisements with a whole day to spare (that hasn't happened nearly all semester!).<br />
<br />
I close the night by chatting with a prospective student about Northeastern's MBA program, scheduling numerous lunch dates with friends for when I'm home in California, watching Netflix and chatting with the boyfriend. What a glorious Leap Day! <br />
<br />
Thursday I'm up early for my full work day. I manage to edit several employer interview videos before my New Product Development class at 5:20 pm.<br />
<br />
We spend the two hours of class learning about <a href="http://www.zaarly.com/">Zaarly</a>, a new company that allows local buyers and sellers to post and fulfill requests for anything from a new sofa to daycare services. The class then develops an actual survey to be sent out to our friends and family during spring break. We will even analyze the results when we return to class in two weeks. Fun!<br />
<br />
Also, in an interesting turn of events, I get a call from a Northeastern co-op employer asking if I would be interested in a co-op at their company from June to December of this year. This provides some interesting issues. Since I would already have graduated by August, I would not be allowed to do a co-op per se, but could work as a temporary employee for the six months. I agree to to call tomorrow to further discuss the opportunity.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-YPaB7TrVtJ4/T2odV2exL_I/AAAAAAAAAZg/sLTwf-zGuKM/s1600/plane.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-YPaB7TrVtJ4/T2odV2exL_I/AAAAAAAAAZg/sLTwf-zGuKM/s320/plane.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Just minutes before getting kicked off the plane....</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Friday is the official start of spring break! I breath a huge sigh of relief. I get up early to pack, clean the apartment and take care of incidentals before my 1:51 pm flight. Alas, what started as a 1:51 pm flight quickly turns into a much later one. You see, after boarding the plane the airline representatives come on board and ask for two people to get off the plane because of weight limits! What!? This has never happened to me before. When it was obvious no one would volunteer, and with my already narrow connection time getting smaller, I volunteer to take a later flight in exchange for a travel voucher. When all is said and done it takes me roughly 12 hours to get to California. Ugh. <br />
<br />
In between all that waiting around, I get an e-mail from the company I'm interviewing with saying they will have a decision to me by next Friday! This anticipation is killing me! Fortunately, I have spring break to distract me (I hope). <br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">*The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Northeastern University, its staff or affiliates.</span></div>Katrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2302762057772415045.post-63480093354069806282012-03-16T17:41:00.000-07:002012-03-16T17:41:05.333-07:00Beta Gamma Sigma, Saturday Classes and a Whole Bunch of Homework<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"> <br />
<b>Seventh Week of Class</b><i> </i><br />
<i>(February 20-26)</i><br />
<br />
Because of the President's Day holiday, my school week starts on Tuesday and what a Tuesday it is! I'm up early to prepare for my phone interview with the Director of Marketing at the company I am interviewing at. We chat for about half an hour. I think/hope it went well and am told to expect a follow-up from Human Resources soon.<br />
<br />
After my phone call I review a ton of new information from <a href="http://hennikerbrewing.com/">Henniker Brewing Company</a>, the start-up brewery that my team is developing a marketing plan for as part of our Brand and Advertising class. My teammates all went up to New Hampshire to visit the company while I was in Montreal so now I have to catch up by reading floor plans, marketing materials, etc. You can read an article about the brewery <a href="http://www.concordmonitor.com/article/289183/plans-on-tap-for-only-henniker-brew-on-earth?SESS3e5f1d37ef734abf96d8443b13535e49=google">here</a>.<br />
<br />
Unfortunately, I don't have too much time for catching up before heading to work until 4:30 pm.<br />
<br />
After work it's dinner and off to Entrepreneurial Finance where we discuss the first major deliverable of our business plan. The market and product portion of the paper is due next week. Yikes. No more putting that hefty assignment off...<br />
<br />
Luckily, that evening I get a nice little e-mail regarding my Living Document 3. Apparently my Critical Skills Development professor really liked my paper and asked if he could use it as a sample for future classes. I'm thrilled and would normally have jumped at the opportunity, however, I didn't feel comfortable enough with the sanitized document to ensure that all names, companies, etc. were completely anonymous so I had to decline. Still, I assume this means I got a good grade so I'm happy.<br />
<br />
Wednesday morning I get an e-mail from my New Product Development asking for a formal SWOT analysis (Strength, Weakness, Opportunity, Threats) for our case on <a href="http://www.orange.co.uk/">Orange</a> Read & Go, a European e-reader. Not one to pass up the opportunity for a grade buffer I resolve to fit that in somehow, somewhere before tomorrow's class.<br />
<br />
In my Innovation & Enterprise Growth class later that day I get a call from a number I recognize as coming from the employer I'm interviewing with. It's all I can do to wait until class lets out and rush out of the room to listen to the message. It is from an HR representative asking if I would be interested in interviewing for a second, different, position in addition to the original one I am interviewing for. I call back but, alas, just miss her as she has left for the day. I'm pretty much jitters and useless for the rest of the day.<br />
<br />
But, I have to meet with a teammate from my Brand & Advertising Management class immediately after to get the in-person run-down on how the team's visit to Henniker Brewing Company went over the weekend while I was away.<br />
<br />
After I'm all caught up I grab some food and head to my Brand & Advertising Management make-up class being held at 7:30 pm tonight to make up for the Monday holiday. It's quite fun to be in smaller class size (only about half the class attending this make-up session) and discuss ad campaigns and their hidden meanings. I feel like I'm back in undergrad analyzing the visual rhetoric of films for my Cinema Studies major. Fun! Plus, we get to critique an <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/27/business/media/absolut-heralds-its-marketing-to-gay-consumers.html">Absolut Vodka ad</a> shot by David LaChapelle, a photographer I love for his vibrant use of color and insanely over-the-top sets.<br />
<br />
On Thursday, while at work, I get a call back from the company I'm interviewing with. The HR representative and I manage to schedule another interview with a Marketing Manager for tomorrow morning. Fortunately, they were very generous in allowing me to interview in Boston at a nearby Starbucks so that I didn't have to rent a car and drive to their office. <br />
<br />
The rest of the day at work is spent in anticipation of my interview tomorrow. I also try and consult with my academic adviser about registering for Saturday classes. You see, to even be able to take the second position I'm being considered for would mean I have to start work full-time before graduation. This means I have to cram in an extra three credits before summer. In order to do that I'm looking at enrolling in three separate Saturday courses, each worth one credit. While the prospect of waking up for an 8:00 am class on Saturday and sitting in class for four hours is not thrilling, it will be totally worth it if I get the job.<br />
<br />
I end up enrolling in Financial Analysis and Modeling with Excel. I'm still debating on what the other two courses will be. I'm looking at Persuasive Communication with B2B Customers and Financial Statement Analysis but have not yet committed to them.My first class is this Saturday! Yikes!<br />
<br />
At 5:20 pm I head to my New Product Development class where I hand in my extra credit SWOT Analysis and we discuss whether Orange's Read & Go e-reader is a good product to enter the market with.<br />
<br />
Normally I would have Spanish after class but tonight I am delinquent and ditch in favor of a Brand and Advertising Management group meeting at Panera. We spend the next several hours pouring over our Henniker Brewing Company paper until we are eventually kicked out of Panera at store close.<br />
<br />
I get home well past 10:00 pm but a sliver of cheer awaits me in the mailbox: my acceptance into <a href="http://www.betagammasigma.org/">Beta Gamma Sigma</a>, a business honor society for those in the top 20% of their MBA class! It was a personal goal of mine to make it into this society since day one of the program and I'm so happy to see that large envelope in the mail.<br />
<br />
Friday I'm up early and dressed in my business best for my interview. I meet the Marketing Manager at a Starbucks in the South End. She tells me about the position and asks me some interview questions. The position sounds amazing and they would be looking for me to start as soon as possible! I'm so excited and can't wait to hear the final verdict next week.<br />
<br />
After the interview I'm back home to change into 'library clothes' and hit Snell for several hours before my 2:30 pm meeting with my Brand & Advertising Management team. We spend a solid amount of time editing our paper and laying out some PowerPoint slides.<br />
<br />
So...yeah, I have class on Saturday morning's now. I am taking three, one-credit Saturday classes (each two sessions long) instead of one of my three credit electives in an effort to finish coursework earlier.The first two weekends are for Financial Analysis and Modeling with Excel. While the class is quite long (8:00 am-1:00 pm) I actually find it very helpful. In fact, I wish I'd taken this course sooner! <br />
<br />
After class lets out at 1:00 pm I manage to grab some food from the Currey Student Center and rush back to the grad lounge to meet up with my Innovation & Enterprise Growth team to work on our innovation project on Six Flags amusement parks. We complete our innovation heuristics (a fancy title for a matrix used to grade business ideas). I'm pretty impressed with how fast we get through the two heuristics and welcome leaving campus at 2:30 pm, though the homework awaiting me at home is not welcome at all....<br />
<br />
Sunday I get up at 7:00 am specifically for the purpose of doing laundry; if that's not pathetic I don't know what is! I even read a case while waiting for the dry cycle to end. *le sigh*<br />
<br />
As soon as I'm done with that it's off to my second home, the library, for several hours of work. I chip away at a Brand and Advertising Management assignment requiring me to analyze three ad campaigns for beer companies, my Entrepreneurial Finance business plan, slides for my presentation on India for Global Management, etc., etc., etc.<br />
<br />
At 6:00 pm I meet up with my mentee at Espresso Royal to see how she's been doing since the Career Fair. I'm happy to hear that she has secured a corporate residency at <a href="https://www.harvardpilgrim.org/portal/page?_pageid=1391,1&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL">Harvard Pilgrim Healthcare</a>! I'm so stoked for her to have snagged such a great company for her residency and so early in the game.<br />
<br />
When I get home that night around 8:30 pm, I somehow manage to sneak in some Academy Awards viewing with the boyfriend over the phone (the joys of a long-distance relationship) though he creams me in our Oscar ballot competition.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">*The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Northeastern University, its staff or affiliates.</span></div>Katrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2302762057772415045.post-12903262898758147142012-03-14T15:09:00.000-07:002012-03-14T15:09:13.295-07:00The Executive Mentor Panel<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qpC2SZbTSj0/T1-UAwZ73CI/AAAAAAAAAYQ/_gk6ew95UPg/s1600/Montreal.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qpC2SZbTSj0/T1-UAwZ73CI/AAAAAAAAAYQ/_gk6ew95UPg/s320/Montreal.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<b>Sixth Week of Class</b><br />
<i>(February 13-19)</i><br />
<br />
Monday I'm back at the library early working on miscellaneous homework assignments before meeting my Global Management team to practice our presentation. As you might recall, my team has been tasked with analyzing the business opportunities/risks of a U.S.-based members-only retailer entering one of three countries (France, Spain or Hong Kong). Since we are going first and presenting in front of a panel of judges, we definitely want to make this good!<br />
<br />
Overall, I think the presentation went well. We seemed to cover all of the critical aspects of our decision while staying within the strict 10-slide maximum. We even managed to find a broadcast news story that supported our decision to enter Hong Kong.<br />
<br />
In between that class and my Brand & Advertising Management course I grab some dinner at Au Bon Pain with my team and then take over a study room in Snell Library to work on my elevator speech for Entrepreneurial Finance.<br />
<br />
In Brand & Advertising Management we go over the Mountain Dew case, watch some fun commercials and review upcoming make-up classes. Unfortunately, due to the plethora of Monday holidays this semester we have to make up all of our missed Brand & Advertising classes at other times.<br />
<br />
When I get home it's back to homework before hitting the hay at midnight<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-aoGUX0aOrtM/T1-U_rINuGI/AAAAAAAAAYY/3KYcTCJZ7K8/s1600/orchid.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-aoGUX0aOrtM/T1-U_rINuGI/AAAAAAAAAYY/3KYcTCJZ7K8/s320/orchid.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My lovely orchid</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Tuesday is Valentine's Day! And how does an MBA student celebrate this most mushy of holidays? Why in the library, work and class of course! I get in some solid reading of my Finance textbook and Innovation book (I admit, I'm a bit behind...) before heading to work. Luckily, I have a nice little surprise to cheer me up: a gorgeous Phalaenopsis orchid from my boyfriend! <br />
<br />
After work I have a few hours to kill before Finance so I further refine my elevator speech and begin work on my New Product Development assignment which is due Thursday. The assignment requires me to interview a wine drinker about a revolutionary new wine bottle closure called the MetaCork (I can think of more than a few people who fit this bill).<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GmidHmvExgs/T1-VyMiudDI/AAAAAAAAAYg/ne0PfxwUx7c/s1600/hearts.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GmidHmvExgs/T1-VyMiudDI/AAAAAAAAAYg/ne0PfxwUx7c/s320/hearts.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">These didn't last long...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>I get home late, but fortunately, there's a fun little surprise from my family waiting for me: Sour Hearts from See's Candies. Thank goodness for Valentine's Day to make an otherwise long day a little more cheerful. <br />
<br />
Wednesday I have an early morning doctor's appointment followed by the first class of the Career Center's series focusing on our impending job search. At 12:00 pm I head to Ell Hall for some free pizza and an overview of 'Launching My Job Search Strategy'. It's quite informative and I enjoy the more casual, discussion-based feel. The class also really sets a fire under me to to start properly mapping out my job search plan.<br />
<br />
We finish with just enough time for me to hop over to Dodge Hall for Innovation & Enterprise Growth at 1:45 pm. <br />
<br />
After class lets out I have some time to finish up my MetaCork case write-up and contribute some innovation ideas to my Six Flags Amusement Park Google document.<br />
<br />
Thursday at work I get to be part of a webinar on the Full-Time MBA program! I'm so excited! I spend an hour helping explain to participants what Northeastern University has done for me and how awesome the program structure and offerings are.<br />
<br />
After work I have New Product Development where we discuss the <a href="http://www.gardnertech.com/products/metacork/products-metacork.html">MetaCork</a> case which outlines a revolutionary new way to seal and open wine bottles. Our assignment for the day involved interviewing a wine drinker on how they perceive the MetaCork. It was interesting to hear how a seemingly 'great' product was so ill-received by the people we interviewed and the market in general. The class provided proof of how important focus groups and research with prototypes is. Gardner Technologies, the maker of the MetaCork, could have saved millions of dollars by doing the proper market research before launch.<br />
<br />
Friday morning is off to a hectic start as I finish packing, head to Budget car rental by the airport and rush back to campus in time for the Executive Mentor Panel at 10:30 am. I was so happy to be invited to participate in the panel and am glad to share the amazing mentor/mentee relationship I have. It was also great to see the large turnout of second year students, alumni and their respective mentors. How cool that some of the Northeastern MBA alums are still in contact with their executive mentors several years after graduation!<br />
<br />
After the Mentor Panel gets out at 11:30 am I hop in my rental car and make the six-hour drive to Montreal to visit Nick. I've been so lucky that he was designated the contact for his company's Montreal project. I get to see him twice as much as I did during my first year of the program. <br />
<br />
I make it to Montreal in record time (less than six hours!) and am able to give Nick some belated Valentine's Day chocolate that I purchased during my <a href="http://www.tazachocolate.com/">Taza Chocolate</a> Factory tour a few weeks back. After we devour the vanilla and rose flavored chocolate disk and dark chocolate cherry bar we head to the hotel bar for some drinks and then an early bedtime.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EtXu85wQNkc/T1-ZGTQJfDI/AAAAAAAAAYo/GS65o3N2s5w/s1600/faberge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EtXu85wQNkc/T1-ZGTQJfDI/AAAAAAAAAYo/GS65o3N2s5w/s320/faberge.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Breakfast poutine at Faberge. It was even better than it looks!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Saturday is Nick and I's make-up Valentine's Day. We start out with an amazing brunch at <a href="http://restofaberge.com/english_AFPR.html">Faberge</a> where we both agree they make the best hollandaise sauce ever.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AGZBEKZZ9u4/T2EWd80uy9I/AAAAAAAAAY4/AFLGDFGatBU/s1600/IMG_1762.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-AGZBEKZZ9u4/T2EWd80uy9I/AAAAAAAAAY4/AFLGDFGatBU/s320/IMG_1762.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Habitat 67. I die!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>We follow our meal up with a visit to <a href="http://www.habitat67.com/home.html">Habitat 67</a>, a famous apartment building built for the Expo of 1967 by architect Moshe Safdie. After learning about it in a modern art history class several years ago I've always wanted to see it in person.<br />
<br />
Next, Nick and I head to the <a href="http://www.montrealsciencecentre.com/home.html">Montreal Science Centre</a> and have fun tinkering with all of the exhibits amidst swarms of young children. We also take in an IMAX movie on tornadoes. Nick has endless amounts of fun teasing me about how 'into it' I was. I'm terrified of twisters so the movie was just fascinating to me. <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-JO8fZo4tVRc/T1-Zwv7kgRI/AAAAAAAAAYw/yuxH2sRHwuU/s1600/polish.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-JO8fZo4tVRc/T1-Zwv7kgRI/AAAAAAAAAYw/yuxH2sRHwuU/s320/polish.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Moody lighting at Stash Cafe</td></tr>
</tbody></table>After the movie we have a Valentine's Day dinner at <a href="http://stashcafe.com/">Stash Cafe</a>, a Polish restaurant in Old Montreal. There we gorged ourselves on a ton of amazing food including placki, peirogis and more.<br />
<br />
Sunday is our 'relaxing day'. We watch movies, get dinner at a nice Italian restaurant called <a href="http://www.portovino.ca/flash/index.html">Portovino</a> and relax. I also make sure to call my Dad on Skype for his birthday! I love Skype for making international calls free.<br />
<br />
Monday is President's Day and I have the day off from school so after breakfast at the hotel I see Nick off to work and make the drive home. I make such good time that I even manage to meet my Six Flags Amusement Park group at 5:00 pm that night to work on our Innovation & Enterprise Growth project. <br />
<br />
Now, I shall end this post with an interesting turn of events. Monday afternoon I get a call from the company I have been interviewing with. My stomach turns as I imagine it must be some big news (whether good or bad news, I can't tell). Instead, it was the company asking if I would mind interviewing with the Director Marketing tomorrow! Of course I said 'yes' but now I had to make sure to go home and prep like crazy. What could this mean? I'll keep you posted.<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">*The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Northeastern University, its staff or affiliates.</span></div>Katrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2302762057772415045.post-12014638423751641172012-03-13T09:15:00.000-07:002012-03-13T09:15:10.065-07:00The Career Fair as a Second-Year<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><b>Fifth Week of Class</b><br />
<i>(February 6-12)</i><br />
<br />
Monday starts off with some early morning case work on <a href="http://www.redlobster.com/">Red Lobster</a>, reading for Innovation and Enterprise Growth (I am, admittedly, a few chapters behind) and a 12:45 pm meeting with my Global Management team to work on a market entry paper and presentation which is due in just a week to a panel of judges!<br />
<br />
While working on the content of our project, my Global Management group also finalizes some questions to ask two guest speakers visiting our Global Management course today. The speakers are international business consultants and will help guide us with our project. <br />
<br />
Besides rubbing elbows with international business consultants in class, we also discuss a pretty fun case called the 'Ikaros Project' which involves an entrepreneur trying to set up hotel reservation kiosks in Greece. Any time I get to study travel and the tourism industry I'm happy.<br />
<br />
In my spare time before Brand & Advertising Management I e-mail my former job references to forewarn them of my impending full-time job search. They all graciously agree to be listed. I also buy some snazzy resume paper to print my updated resumes on for tomorrow's Career Fair. <br />
<br />
In Brand & Advertising management we discuss the repositioning of Red Lobster, paying particular attention to whether or not a rebranding strategy to position the restaurant as 'upscale' would even work.<br />
<br />
Tuesday morning starts out at work for a few hours but come 11:30 am it's time to get my suite out and resume ready because it's the Career Fair! While decidedly less exciting than last year when I was a first-year undergoing co-op interviews, the event is still a perfect place to reconnect with employers and hand out my resume. It's also a blast because GE Aviation is there so I get to catch up with my old co-workers. <br />
<br />
After the fair I head back to work to complete my hours for the day. In between work and Finance I head home, make dinner and send out a plethora of thank you notes to employers I spoke to at the fair.<br />
<br />
In Entrepreneurial Finance tonight we get our case follow-up assignments for Marine Supply Company back and I get an A-! Woot! I'm stoked, particularly because I was sure I had messed up my numbers.<br />
<br />
Later that evening I also receive an e-mail from my executive mentor introducing me to a friend of his who is considering the Northeastern Full-Time MBA program. I get super excited and offer to answer any questions he has. He also tells me that his friend might be able to make the mentor panel that my mentor and I will be on next Friday.<br />
<br />
As has probably become apparent, even on my late start days I'm on campus early. Wednesday morning is no exception as I snag a spot in the grad lounge around 8:45 am and wait for my teammate to arrive to write our New Product Development company proposal. The assignment entails a new product development process audit of a firm. After racking our brains for a while, not satisfied with the access or scope of all the companies we've come up with, I suggest Northeastern University. Why not? They offer many majors and courses (products) and are constantly updating the curriculum, concentrations ,etc. Genius! We both agree this is a perfect company.<br />
<br />
After we wrap up I head to a doctors appointment and sneak in some homework before heading back to the grad lounge for the MBA program's ritual second Wednesday pizza party. I love being back on campus and being able to take advantage of these fun, free food opportunities. As usual, the lounge is packed with students, faculty and staff. But this pizza lunch is a bit more lively as first years are all abuzz about their potential co-ops. Many have received offers already from yesterday's Career Fair and are trying to decide which to go with. How exciting! I definitely remember this time last year when my phone was glued to my hand as I anxiously awaited a decision.<br />
<br />
After pizza I have Innovation & Enterprise Growth. In class we discuss the strategy of <a href="http://www.panerabread.com/">Panera Bread</a> and how it can maintain its success as a mature product. <br />
<br />
After class I do what I like to call 'interview reconnaissance work'. I stop by two convenience stores and a Shaw's to take note of the company I'm interviewing with's shelf space, placement, and product line. I even buy two types of their product to try out. When I get home I prepare some more, researching my interviewers, the company, competitive landscape and more.<br />
<br />
I end the night with a case study detailing the innovation process of P&G versus Google. <br />
<br />
Thursday is my long day. I get to work at 8:30 am and continue my research of competitor schools and the marketing materials they use. We're working on re-designing our Northeastern Full-Time MBA marketing collateral and so I've been tasked with scoping out the competition. It's amazing to see what technology has done for them! One school even has an interactive brochure with embedded videos! Crazy!<br />
<br />
After work I have just enough time to scrounge around for food before my New Product Development class where we discuss the crowdsourcing phenomenon of generating innovations from outside the firm. P&G's <a href="https://secure3.verticali.net/pg-connection-portal/ctx/noauth/PortalHome.do">Connect + Develop</a> site is famous for gathering ideas from around the world and from sources as varied as large companies to individuals.<br />
<br />
While I love my Spanish class through NUCalls, I'm glad when I get an e-mail this evening saying it's cancelled for the day. I will definitely use the extra time to work on my market entry scenario for Global Management and prep for my interview tomorrow! Eek!<br />
<br />
Friday is the big day! I grab my Zipcar and make the 40-minute drive to my interview at the company's headquarters. I'm nervous, totally excited and more. The interviews last from 9:00 am-1:30 pm and I get to meet with five different people. Everyone is so nice and provides great insights into the company and why they love working there. I'm told to expect a decision next week. Keep you fingers crossed for me!<br />
<br />
When I get back to the city around 3:00 pm you'd think I would just want to go to sleep, but alas, this is not in the cards for me. I head straight to campus, business suite and all, for four hours of work on my Global Management group project. We are preparing a report and presentation for Monday. We must determine which of three countries (Hong Kong, France or Spain) a U.S.-based members only online retailer should enter (say that five times fast!).<br />
<br />
When I get home that night around 8:00pm all I want to do is eat dinner and plop down in front of Netflix.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KDxa92iO1Z0/T0_VKGVkZrI/AAAAAAAAAYA/SSCGqhU9u8c/s1600/pancakes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KDxa92iO1Z0/T0_VKGVkZrI/AAAAAAAAAYA/SSCGqhU9u8c/s320/pancakes.jpg" uda="true" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pumpkin Pie Pancakes at the Pour House</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Saturday I'm up early to meet a friend for brunch at the <a href="http://www.pourhouseboston.com/">Pour House</a>. Apparently most places are only open for brunch on Sunday so our choices were a bit more limited. Luckily, it was awesome and super cheap (like $20 for both of our entrees, sides and drinks cheap). I, of course, opted for the most opulently sugary item they had: pumpkin pie pancakes which were nearly indiscernible beneath a blanket of whipped cream (yes!).<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kktx8m8iZJg/T0_XGlmPVxI/AAAAAAAAAYI/0zkaEtVmfj4/s1600/Capture.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="210" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-kktx8m8iZJg/T0_XGlmPVxI/AAAAAAAAAYI/0zkaEtVmfj4/s320/Capture.PNG" uda="true" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of the Mountain Dew Campaigns I Analyzed</td></tr>
</tbody></table>The rest of the day is spent at the library (a 5-hour stint) as I work on that Global Management project and a case write-up on <a href="http://mountaindew.com/">Mountain Dew</a> for my Brand & Advertising Management course.<br />
<br />
Sunday is another long day at the library. After forcing myself to learn more about Mountain Dew than I ever thought possible, I reward myself with a little manicure before heading back home for more homework to close out the weekend<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">*The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Northeastern University, its staff or affiliates.</span></div>Katrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2302762057772415045.post-56106173047636567112012-02-28T12:02:00.000-08:002012-02-28T12:02:56.243-08:00Running to Stand Still<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GA3p9kP53fE/T00bdti_WnI/AAAAAAAAAXo/c8potMMow7Q/s1600/taza+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GA3p9kP53fE/T00bdti_WnI/AAAAAAAAAXo/c8potMMow7Q/s320/taza+1.jpg" uda="true" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<b>Fourth Week of Class</b><br />
<i>(January 30 - February 5)</i><br />
<br />
By Monday morning I can already tell that this week is going to be less than fun. I'm up at 6:00 am and at the library before 8:00 am to cram as much homework as possible before a meeting with my teammate.<br />
<br />
My partner meets me in our reserved room in Snell at 10:00 am and we cram some more for a case deliverable for our New Product Development class. The case is about Taino Construction, a construction company in Mexico focusing on green initiatives. The firm is facing a decision on which of three different new products to pursue in the coming years.<br />
<br />
We wrap up our session by 1:45 pm in time for Global Management where the class discusses a case on the French/Swedish joint venture of Matra-Ericsson. It's interesting to see how cultural differences can cause such conflict between companies, eventually resulting in a stand-off between directors. Yikes!<br />
<br />
After class lets out at 4:15 pm I work on my case write-up for Brand & Ad Management on the Clorox Company and am able to submit it just before heading to an extra credit lecture.<br />
<br />
The lecture, presented by Andy Savitz, covers sustainability and getting your corporate culture to follow that focus. When the lecture finishes, I have just about an hour to write up a summary of it to submit for extra credit points and work in some Finance reading before heading into my 7:30 pm Brand & Advertising Management class.<br />
<br />
When all is said and done I don't get home today until after 10:00 pm (a lovely 14 hours on campus!). Bed, alas, comes substantially later.<br />
<br />
Tuesday I'm up and at the library by 8:00 am again. This time I'm wracking my brain trying to figure out my Finance case write-up. It's a follow-up to the one I had due last week on Marine Supply Company, a local marine supplier faced with generating enough financing to meet the demand placed on them by a Navy contract.<br />
<br />
I only get in a couple hours of work until it's time to head to me job at 11:30 am. I spend the day researching competitor schools and their respective marketing materials. In between my secondary research I make sure to take a break at 2:30 pm for a phone interview for a full-time Assistant Marketing Manager position! I'm so excited!<br />
<br />
I leave work at 4:30 pm today and head to my classmates office hours (she is a finance tutor this semester). I rack her brain trying to comprehend my Entrepreneurial Finance case write-up. Even after nearly three hours working with her I barely finish it in time to hit print and bolt to class. By the time we're finished analyzing the Marine Supply re-write and class let's out it's 9:30pm (a 13.5 hour day). Phew!<br />
<br />
On Wednesday morning it's back to the library early in the morning (note a theme here?) to work with my teammates on our presentation and paper for Innovation & Enterprise Growth. We have been tasked with finding ways to expand 3M's Greptile technology into new and innovative product extensions. My group has come up with what I think are several great applications for the 3M material, including military, tire and construction equipment uses. The presentation in class goes well also and I feel that our group had some of the best ideas presented.<br />
<br />
After class I head back to the library to meet with my Taino Construction teammate and we continue to plug away at filling out our decision matrix for the case.<br />
<br />
Thursday I'm up and at campus by 8:30 am for work. Today I continue to work on employer and alumni video edits, transcripts and the coordination of a focus group. <br />
<br />
Luckily, in the midst of my work I get some great news in the form of an invite for second round interviews for the job I applied for! I'll be visiting the company's corporate headquarters next Friday for five hours of interviews! I'm super excited and nervous and make it point to do my product research in preparation. <br />
<br />
As 4:30 pm rolls around I have just a few minutes to grab my requisite sushi dinner from the Curry Student Center before heading to my 5:20 pm class.<br />
<br />
That night in New Product Development our case report on Taino is due. After class I rush to Spanish where I enjoy some foreign language practice. <br />
<br />
When I get home that night I'm exhausted but relieved that this hectic week of running to stand still is over. Plus, I have some fun plans for tomorrow!<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JYDjxKBLWQA/T00msP8y0xI/AAAAAAAAAXw/BEICMgEFxNs/s1600/taza+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-JYDjxKBLWQA/T00msP8y0xI/AAAAAAAAAXw/BEICMgEFxNs/s320/taza+2.jpg" uda="true" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Taza Factory Tour!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Friday is a much anticipated day off. After getting up at a leisurely hour I board the 'T' to Somerville for my 1:30 pm tour of the <a href="http://www.tazachocolate.com/">Taza Chocolate</a> factory with a classmate. For $5 we get an hour-long tour of the chocolate manufacturer' facilities. They specialize in Mexican stone ground chocolate in a mind-boggling array of exotic flavors (read: Chipotle Chili, Salted Almond and Salt & Pepper). My classmate and I enjoy the endless tasting opportunities and we even get interviewed by a couple of Boston.com writers for a Valentine's Day feature. I end the tour by picking up some Valentine's Day featured chocolate as an early Valentine's Day gift for Nick.<br />
<br />
After our indulgent morning we decide to continue the Mexican food theme and grab some authentic and delicious tacos and pupusas at <a href="http://tacolocomexican.com/">Taco Loco</a>. <br />
<br />
I'm glad I had such a relaxing Friday because the rest of the weekend is commandeered by homework. <br />
<br />
I spend most of my day on Saturday engrossed in a huge project for Global Management. I, along with my team of three other students, have been assigned a company and industry and are required to pick the best of three international countries in which to proceed with expansion. While the presentation isn't until February 13th the sheer amount of research required to prepare for the deliverable has us working on it already. I'm in charge of putting together a SWOT (Strength, Weakness, Opportunity, Threat) Analysis for one of the three country options: France.<br />
<br />
I also manage to plug away on a case write-up due on Monday for Brand & Advertising Management. I have to decide which branding strategy <a href="http://www.redlobster.com/">Red Lobster </a>should pursue in light of recent market research results but I'm having hard time concentrating because I just keep thinking about seafood...<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8yiAECkluj0/T00s1swBcDI/AAAAAAAAAX4/SeVaD_Oboik/s1600/mexican.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8yiAECkluj0/T00s1swBcDI/AAAAAAAAAX4/SeVaD_Oboik/s320/mexican.jpg" uda="true" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chipotle Enchiladas, Homemade Guacamole and Margaritas!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Fortunately, I do get one break that evening and it satisfies the cravings generated by that Red Lobster case! I join my study-buddy for some Mexican food at the <a href="http://bestmargaritas.com/">Cactus Club</a> on Boylston Street. I truly enjoy my chipotle enchiladas and mango margarita after hours in the library. Ole!<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">*The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Northeastern University, its staff or affiliates.</span></div>Katrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2302762057772415045.post-4233182217305408632012-02-21T15:59:00.000-08:002012-02-21T15:59:33.528-08:00A Shadow Day with my Executive Mentor<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><b>Third Week of Class</b><br />
<i>(January 23-29)</i><br />
<br />
I'm back on campus early the Monday after my Montreal trip to help out with an Admitted Students Day at Northeastern. I really enjoy meeting the prospective MBA students of the Class of 2014 and try my best to mingle with all of them and answer their respective questions. <br />
<br />
I spend the rest of the morning doing homework before my Global Management class where we discuss a case about Danimal (an offshoot of Danone yogurt). This case was particularly interesting to me because it discussed marketing and selling to the 'bottom of the pyramid' segment of the population (people living on less than $3,000 a year).<br />
<br />
In Brand & Advertising Management we discuss the results of our consumer interviews. It's pretty fun to hear about each students interviewee and their respective brand passion (let's just say there were many Apple and Starbucks fans out there).<br />
<br />
Tuesday is hectic for several reasons. One: my first case write-up for Finance is due and I am totally nervous. Two: I have a job application due which I want to make sure is as perfect as possible (yikes, can you believe that I'm already applying to full-time jobs?). Three: I'm meeting up with a friend for coffee somewhere in that madness.<br />
<br />
Fortunately, all get accomplished and I even manage to sneak in that hour-long coffee break with my friend (a recently-graduated MBA student that I met during a class visit two years ago when I was a prospective student). It's super exciting to hear about her job search and all the offers she's received. Let's just hope I'll be as fortunate!<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3RiGBZLIFU8/T0PzINoRnTI/AAAAAAAAAXY/FuhZd8CTvAw/s1600/Capture.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="233" lda="true" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3RiGBZLIFU8/T0PzINoRnTI/AAAAAAAAAXY/FuhZd8CTvAw/s400/Capture.PNG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My Intercultural Effectiveness Rating</td></tr>
</tbody></table>On Wednesday before class I complete a survey by the Kozai Group regarding my 'Intercultural Effectiveness'. This survey was assigned by my Global Management professor as a basis for a class discussion next week. I end up being scored as an 'Explorer' meaning I "enjoy developing friendships with and learning about people who differ from me, but that this is an emotionally challenging experience for me." Hmmm... don't know if I agree with the 'emotionally challenging' part but otherwise I'd say it's right.<br />
<br />
Thursday is another crazy day. Besides eight hours of work, I also have a team meeting for a case write-up, New Product Development class and my first NUCALLS Spanish class! <br />
<br />
In New Product Development we had to submit our first assignment of the class: contributions to an ideation community. This activity was the basis for learning about crowdsourcing: where companies generate ideas for new product development from individuals outside of the organization. Our assignment was to find such a crowdsourcing site, contribute an idea of our own and comment on an idea from someone else. I found a site for Starbucks called <a href="http://mystarbucksidea.force.com/">My Starbucks Idea</a>.<br />
<br />
Unfortunately, our professor is out sick for today's class so instead, we have a great guest speaker that talks to us about different ways to brainstorm ideas and leads us in exercises on thinking outside of the box. <br />
<br />
After class I literally run to my Spanish class which is held across campus. As mentioned, the course is put on by <a href="http://www.nucalls.neu.edu/learn.html">NUCALLS</a>, a student organization that offers free language courses taught by international students. I thought it would be an awesome way for me to keep my Spanish skills 'in shape' after several years of slacking off. Plus, I'm super happy that they offer levels beyond just 'beginner'.<br />
<br />
Friday I'm up at the crack of dawn to board the 'T' to Quincy for a shadow day with my executive mentor. I'm so stoked because he and I have been trying for several months to coordinate a day where I can come to his offices but with both of our hectic schedules it hasn't happened until now. <br />
<br />
The wait was well worth it though and my day is super rewarding! My mentor graciously takes me to three of his office locations, introduces me to several of his employees and even lets me sit in and contribute during a meeting. We end the day with lunch at a Chinese restaurant where I get a call regarding the job I applied for. They inform me that I have been invited to interview next week! <br />
<br />
When I get back into the city around 5:00 pm I quickly get ready and meet a friend for drinks and dinner at <a href="http://www.jerryremys.com/">Jerry Remy's</a>. I order up an obscene serving of nachos and my friend and I catch up on the past week.<br />
<br />
Saturday morning I'm back at the library early before meeting my team at 1:00 pm to work on our case presentation on 3M for our Innovation and Enterprise Growth class. We have been tasked with coming up with innovative product extensions for 3M's Greptile technology which is currently used on golf gloves. Our ideas are about as varied as you can get and range from military uses to tires and even clothing!<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GHVAbT6T-gE/T0P0sEooO8I/AAAAAAAAAXg/A1icSYfTnsA/s1600/tn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" lda="true" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GHVAbT6T-gE/T0P0sEooO8I/AAAAAAAAAXg/A1icSYfTnsA/s320/tn.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Now that's what I call a home-cooked meal!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>After the group parts ways I get in a few extra hours of homework before meeting up at a classmates apartment with several of my teammates for German food, drinks and dessert (all prepared by a classmate). I'm totally impressed with his cooking skills and have a great time.<br />
<br />
Alas, Sunday is not funday...ugh. It's nose to the books nearly all day and I only manage to break away briefly for some grocery shopping. <br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: xx-small;">*The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Northeastern University, its staff or affiliates.</span></div>Katrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2302762057772415045.post-12510814991901727782012-02-06T09:07:00.000-08:002012-02-06T09:07:44.691-08:00The Power of Networking<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XtrG2dJXtvs/TzAGvdOtTSI/AAAAAAAAAW4/04F7MnAB5F0/s1600/ice.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XtrG2dJXtvs/TzAGvdOtTSI/AAAAAAAAAW4/04F7MnAB5F0/s320/ice.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ice on the car window- Montreal</td></tr>
</tbody></table><b>Second Week of Class </b><br />
<i>(January 16- 22) </i><br />
<br />
As I had Monday off for Martin Luther King Jr. Day, my second week of class starts on Tuesday.<br />
<br />
I do a bit of work on Tuesday morning before my 11:30 am check in at work. I hear back from some prospective students I reached out to last week and am able to answer some of their questions (which I love doing!)<br />
<br />
I have also already scheduled my first office hours appointment with my Finance professor. You might ask, but isn't it only the second week of class? Yes it is; but hey, he offered for me to come in when I needed help so I'm going to take him up on it. My professor is very patient with me and I come away feeling much more confident with my assignment.<br />
<br />
That night is Entrepreneurial Finance where our assignment is to submit a new business idea that will be the framework for our semester-long project. The project entails developing all of the financial documents to support our new venture including Income Statements, Balance Sheets, estimated funding, etc. In class we also hold a lottery for which topic each of us will cover in an essay due later this year. Mine? "Managing Non-Traditional Inventories in Customer Service".<br />
<br />
Wednesday is a pretty amazing day of networking for me. I start out my morning by taking the 'T' out to Wellesley Hills to meet up with a guest speaker from my Market Research class. The informational interview goes amazingly well. I can't believe he spends an hour chatting with me, answering all of my pestering questions and offering me his network of LinkedIn connections to peruse for more networking opportunities. I'm even able to set up a connection with him and the Career Center to potentially recruit Northeastern MBAs in the future.<br />
<br />
I don't have much time once I get back to Boston before my Innovation and Enterprise Growth class, but in the time I do have I cram some homework, grab lunch and head to campus.<br />
<br />
Innovation and Enterprise Growth lets out a bit early today and thank goodness for that because I have an Ocean Spray Insider Insight Session to attend from 4:00-6:00 pm. The presentation is awesome and super informative. It's so nice to see people passionate about the company they work for. I particularly liked learning about the unique opportunities available within a cooperative business model (and the free Craisins and sparkling cranberry juice!).<br />
<br />
After the info session gets out I head across the street to meet a few classmates for drinks at Conor Larkin's.We sip the new house brew and catch up on the past several months. It's hard to believe it's been that long since seeing some of them. Time flies!<br />
<br />
Alas, I cannot stay with them long. I have much work to do. When I get home I make sure to send out my thank you notes in between my intense homework load.<br />
<br />
Thursday I'm back in the office at 8:30 am with a special assignment. Today I get to help out with prospective students! Love it! Besides my research for the day I escort two prospective students to a class visit. This was particularly rewarding for me because this time two years ago I attended a class and it was the kind admissions staff, welcoming students and engaging course that really convinced me to apply. Plus, they attended a Strategy class with one of my favorite teachers from last year.<br />
<br />
After the students get out I take them to lunch at International Village in one of the undergraduate dorms. We spend more than hour talking and I hope that I answered all of their questions.<br />
<br />
That night in my New Product Development class we get to see students present real-life examples of the stage-gate process in their companies. I thought that this was a very cool way to teach us about the topic: by having our own classmates present slides with examples from their own experience.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-MvjmJWPXQUA/TzAE2t_kVXI/AAAAAAAAAWo/uk-ue6HmIFI/s1600/breakfast.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a>When I get home I cram homework in between packing for my drive to Montreal tomorrow to visit Nick (did I mention that I'm loving that his work keeps bringing him to the same coast as me?).<br />
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZSWv2cIi8Fo/TzAEyoQtYuI/AAAAAAAAAWg/uvci9XH5c84/s1600/food.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZSWv2cIi8Fo/TzAEyoQtYuI/AAAAAAAAAWg/uvci9XH5c84/s200/food.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chipotle Poutine with Chorizo and Guacamole - Jack Astor's Bar & Grill</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
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</tbody></table><div style="text-align: right;"></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MAtWp7C8IBk/TzAGf6AsrJI/AAAAAAAAAWw/q60s7a_Flok/s1600/breakfast.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MAtWp7C8IBk/TzAGf6AsrJI/AAAAAAAAAWw/q60s7a_Flok/s200/breakfast.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Raisin Bread French Toast with Bacon and Cheese - Le Dejeuner Cosmopolitain</td></tr>
</tbody></table>That weekend is a relaxing one. After the six-hour drive up to Canada on Friday the next two days are decidedly less hectic. Nick and I eat good food (see examples 1 and 2 above), watch movies and take walks around the cold and snowy Mont Royal Park.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9muk6s-2gAQ/TzAG7s4nC4I/AAAAAAAAAXA/zHKHVGYzc-M/s1600/sled.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9muk6s-2gAQ/TzAG7s4nC4I/AAAAAAAAAXA/zHKHVGYzc-M/s320/sled.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sledding course set up in Mont Royal Park</td></tr>
</tbody></table>I'm able to get some homework done as well (which relieves a lot of stress for me). One of those productive activities is sending in a revised version of my resume. I can't believe I'm already gearing up for that full-time job search. What works out even better is that one of my assignments for Brand & Advertising Management is to interview someone about a brand they love. Fortunately for me, Nick has more than slight addiction to Perrier. Perfect! <br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">*The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Northeastern University, it's employees or affiliates.</span></div>Katrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2302762057772415045.post-32579991479466010262012-02-04T11:57:00.000-08:002012-02-04T11:57:42.670-08:00Back in School - Spring Semester 2012<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><b>First Week of Class </b><br />
<i>(January 9-16)</i> <br />
<br />
Greetings all! It is officially my first week back in school and also the start of my last year in the Northeastern Full-Time MBA program (*sniff*). Below is my schedule for this semester, including classes and work. I would like you all to note the lovely 'Friday' column. That's right: it's completely free! Hooray!<br />
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<img alt="" 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" /><br />
<br />
Well, to get started, I am happy to say that my first week back as a full-time student is off to a pretty leisurely pace. I spend my Monday morning getting settled from my trip and running errands. I head to campus around 10:00 am to face my looming Living Document 3, which is due this Friday. I didn't get nearly as far with it before my trip as I had hoped and now must pay the price. Ugh!<br />
<br />
After a solid three hours of work it's time for my first class (remember, classes this semester are in the afternoon and evening). First up: Global Management. I'm pretty excited about this class because it was the same one I attended for a class visit way back when I was a prospective student visiting Northeastern.<br />
<br />
Fortunately, our professor is very engaging. We spend a good while doing the whole introduction thing, paying particular attention to everyone's diverse backgrounds and travel experience before digging right into our first case assignment on a Bulgarian entrepreneur starting a feta cheese company in the United States. We had to submit our case preparation charts for the Malincho case by 8:00 pm last night. Considering that my classmates and I tend to work on a 'midnight' time schedule, that early cut-off is going to be a bit rough to get used to.<br />
<br />
After class lets out at 4:15 pm I have more than three hours to kill before my Brand and Advertising Management course at 7:30 pm so it's home for some early dinner and more Living Document 3 work.<br />
<br />
At 7:30 pm I'm back in class for Brand and Advertising Management. I think it should be pretty good as well. Our professor actually comes from a technical background so she should offer an interesting spin on analyzing markets and managing a product. We'll also be working on a re-branding project for a company of our choosing throughout the course of the semester<br />
<br />
As much as I enjoyed class I'm thankful when we are let out early. I take this opportunity to go home and sleep.<br />
<br />
Tuesday is my first day of work back in the Marketing Department of the Northeastern Graduate School of Business! <br />
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I spend the morning beforehand working on my Living Document 3 and then come into the office (conveniently located in Dodge Hall) at 11:30 am. I'm really excited because I have been give double the hours I worked last year which means I should be able to contribute more to projects. I'm already off to a good start as I spend my day researching marketing touch points for the recently admitted classes of our graduate programs. <br />
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In the three hours between work and my Entrepreneurial Finance class I follow up with a employer contact (a guest speaker from my Market Research course last semester) to see if we can meet up for an informational interview. I told myself I would hit the ground running with networking when I got back so I'm determined to do so!<br />
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I also book my flight home for spring break, which this year is thankfully in March. I feel so jet-setter as I pay only $10 for the round-trip tickets to California using miles I've accumulated from all my travels.<br />
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Duh, Duh, Duh (that's supposed to be ominous music)...7:30 pm rolls around and it's time for my first Entrepreneurial Finance course! Yikes! But why, you ask, is an obvious marketing student with zero financial acumen taking a finance course of her own accord? Good question. You see, I am aware that analyzing financial statements is not my forte and that is precisely why I am using one of my free electives to take a finance class. I'm nervous, but also excited. I'll tell you in a few weeks whether or not I'm crying over this decision.<br />
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Luckily, and unexpectedly, I love the class and my professor. Dare I say it has been my favorite so far! Blasphemy! After getting the run-down on the course and how our professor believes in a more practical and applicable study of finance we are sent home. I make sure to go up to him after class and let him know about my handicap and, to my surprise, he's very supportive and tells me to come see him whenever I need.<br />
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What's more, when I arrive home I am greeted by a giant basket of <a href="http://www.lindtusa.com/">Lindt & Sprungli</a> chocolates! I won this prize through Twitter (of all places!). <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QcuiDtBfVng/Ty2Lw7g8o_I/AAAAAAAAAWQ/sAnlZDsqSZ0/s1600/Capture.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="252" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QcuiDtBfVng/Ty2Lw7g8o_I/AAAAAAAAAWQ/sAnlZDsqSZ0/s320/Capture.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yay Chocolate!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Wednesday morning is filled with more Living Document 3 writing before my second required core course of the semester, Innovation and Enterprise Growth at 1:45 pm. This class was very entertaining and our professor seems to be another prime example of someone who cares more for applicable, realistic knowledge than textbook answers. Love it! Our first exercise? Well working in group to build as tall a tower as possible with marshmallows and spaghetti, of course.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zK1tr60Ifwc/Ty2MTiWDe2I/AAAAAAAAAWY/GHpF0bYXwWg/s1600/marsh.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zK1tr60Ifwc/Ty2MTiWDe2I/AAAAAAAAAWY/GHpF0bYXwWg/s320/marsh.jpg" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Behold the glory! Maybe I should become an engineer instead?</td></tr>
</tbody></table>After class lets out a friend and I head to a relatively new bar on Dartmouth Street: <a href="http://lolitaboston.com/">Lolita Cocina & Tequila Bar.</a> I indulge in a rose sangria and we share an obscene serving of chips and guacamole.<br />
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At 7:00 pm we make the quick walk over to <a href="http://www.citytableboston.com/">City Table</a> to meet up with another friend who is still on co-op for dinner. I order up their slider variety plate (with crab cake, braised short rib and Kobe beef burger sandwiches) and spend a lovely evening catching up with them.<br />
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I also hear back from my networking outreach! I have an informational interview set up for next Wednesday with the guest speaker from my Market Research class. So excited!<br />
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Thursdays are going to be long days for me this semester. I head into work for an eight-hour shift from 8:30 am-4:30 pm and spend most of it continuing my research on marketing touch points. <br />
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In the 50 free minutes I have between work and class I manage to grab some food. <br />
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At 5:20 pm it's time for New Product Development. I'm beginning to realize that I have a very 'innovation'- heavy course load this year (Innovation and Enterprise Growth, Entrepreneurial Finance, New Product Development) and I like it. I'm looking forward to the challenge of supporting my creativity with sound financial knowledge and business practicality.<br />
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In class I learn that my New Product Development professor is ALSO from a technical background! Interesting! Since it's week one of class we are let go early and I head home to work on my Living Document 3 (I have less than 24 hours to complete it!).<br />
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Despite it being my 'day off' from school and work, I'm up early and at the library before 9:00 am on Friday. I somehow manage to pound out the remainder of my paper, get it printed, bound and dropped off before 2:00 pm. The final result: a whopping 38 pages of glory! While I do think that the three-part Living Document process was a valuable tool, I'm a bit relieved that this is my final deliverable of the year-and-a-half long assignment.<br />
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Saturday, Sunday and Monday are so wonderfully lazy I would be embarrassed to spell it out in detail. Let's suffice it to say I was actually bored! Several movies were watched, errands were run and (some) homework was completed. I even managed to fit in a fab take-out Chinese dinner with a classmate (the <a href="http://www.grubhub.com/">grubhub iPhone app</a> is a godsend, by the way). As I don't delude myself at all into thinking this can possibly last beyond this week, I savor every moment.<br />
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">*The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of Northeastern University, its staff, employees or affiliates.</span></div>Katrina Graveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12499808873319908727noreply@blogger.com0